The Power of Christy
by charmedkat48
Summary: Prue is dead. Is she truly gone? Christina knows that she isn't, for she shares her body with Prue's soul. Tiny bit of femslash.
1. Past is Present

Darkness. Darkness, death, and silence surrounded Prue. Then, a light. It grew closer and closer…

Suddenly, she fell, fell into the unnamable depth. If she had had a voice, she might have screamed.

But she had no voice.

* * *

"Oww," I moaned as I sat up. What had happened? Had I fallen out of bed? No, I was sitting in the middle of the floor. I blinked a few times, trying to clear the cloudiness in my mind. I stood up unsteadily. The room swirled around me. "Stop," I pleaded, my eyes shut tight. The vertigo gradually disappeared. 

_"Hello? Hello? Where am I?"_

I whirled around, searching for the source of the voice. "Who said that?"

_"I did."_

"Kara?"

_"No."_

"Kara, quit messing around. Where are you?" I opened the closet. Nothing but clothes.

_"I'm not Kara. My name is Prudence Halliwell, Prue for short. Who are you?"_

"Kara, this isn't funny. You're really creeping me out," I said nervously.

_"This isn't a joke," _the voice said impatiently. _"The sooner you realize that, the sooner I can figure this out."_

It didn't sound like the voice was coming from somewhere in my room. It sounded more like it was in my head. "Oh great," I sighed. "I'm hearing things."

_"You're not hearing things. I'm a real person."_

"Yeah, right."

_"I can prove it."_

"How?"

_"Call my sisters." _She gave me the number.

"Whatever you say." I dialed the phone.

"Hello?"

_"Ask for Piper."_

"Is this Piper?" I asked, not even thinking that it would be her. I had never even heard of the name Piper.

"Yes."

I slammed down the phone. My hands were shaking. "Okay. There must be a logical explanation for this."

_"There is. My spirit has somehow ended up in your mind."_

"But… But…" I stammered. "That's not scientifically possible!"

_"But it is magically possible."_

I laughed and sat down at my vanity. "I'm – ahh!" In the mirror, there was a reflection of a woman. Black hair – no, my hair was red. Blue eyes – no, my eyes were brown. She was an adult – but I was a teen. "Ho - how…" I trailed off.

"Christy, are you all right?" my mother asked as she opened the door.

I jumped away from the mirror. "I'm fine. I just… Pooka scared me."

"Oh, okay. That cat certainly does love surprising people."

I waited until she had gone back to her room. "So you're a real person. Was that your reflection?"

_"Yes. Who are you?"_

"Christina Raven."

_"Christina, I'm about to tell you something very shocking."_

"Try me."

_"I'm a witch. Magic is real. When I was alive, I had the powers of astral projection and telekinesis."_

"Oh," was all I could say. "Wait. When you were alive? You're dead?"

_"Yes. I was killed by the demon Shax."_

"Demon? They exist too?"

_"Yes. Magical creatures also exist. Anyways, I have two sisters: Piper and Phoebe. I have to talk to them."_

"Sure. Where do they live?"

_"San Francisco."_

"Sorry, but we're in New York City. I cannot go to San Francisco. I could call them-"

_"No. It has to be in person," _Prue said firmly.

"Okay then. How do you suggest I get there?"

_"Can you drive?"_

"Yeah, but this is New York City."

_"So?"_

"No one drives. I don't even own a car. My parents would kill me if I took the car."

_"This is an emergency."_

"I can't just pack up and leave. I have a life. My parents would have a fit."

_"You're way too virtuous."_

"Why do you have to get to your sisters?"

_"Because they think I'm dead."_

"You are dead," I pointed out.

_"Look, something weird is going on. I have to go to them."_

"I can't take the car."

_"You're not going to budge on this, are you?"_

"Nope."

_"Oh! I've been so stupid!"_

"What?"

_"Call out the name 'Leo'."_

"Leo?"

_"He's our whitelighter."_

"And that means?"

_"He's an angel."_

"Right."

_"Just do it."_

"Leo!" I called, feeling really silly. "Nothing."

_"Again. He should sense me."_

"Leo! Prue needs you!"

Blue light filled the room. A man appeared.

I took one look at him and fainted.

* * *

_"Christy, wake up!" _Prue yelled. 

I opened my eyes to find that the man was still there.

_"Don't scream," _she continued.

I stopped myself from screaming. "Are you Leo?"

He nodded. "How do you know Prue?"

"Well, you're not going to believe this, but… she's in my head. Her soul got into my mind. I don't know how and neither does she."

He stared at me.

_"Ask him how long I've been dead."_

"She wants to know how long she's been dead."

"Almost five months. Is she really in there?"

"Yup. She wants me to go to San Francisco, but I can't. I'm Christy, by the way."

"I can orb you there."

"Orb?"

"It's a type of instant transportation," he explained.

_"I want to talk to him. Just relax."_

Something cold washed over me. I felt myself being pushed back. I could see everything, but I knew that I wasn't in control.

"Leo, it's me. I was just about to pass on from this… darkness when I got yanked back. What happened?" My mouth was moving, but I didn't have any control over my words.

"I don't know. This has never happened before."

"How are my sisters?"

"They're… well, they're dealing."

"You're not telling me something."

"It's complicated," Leo said. "I'll explain when we get there."

I was pushed forward. "Okay, that was weird."

He took my hand and did the blue-orb-thing.

"Hey, Leo." The woman stopped when she saw me. "Who is this?"

_"Piper!"_ Prue cried.

"This is Christy. Where are Phoebe and Paige?" Leo asked.

_"Paige? Who's Paige?"_ Prue wondered.

"We're right here."

_"Phoebe!"_

"Geez, Prue, do you have to yell? I can hear you just fine," I grumbled.

The girls stared at me. "Prue? Why did you say that?"

"She's stuck in my mind." They continued to stare at me, obviously unable to comprehend what I had just said.

_"Paige must be an innocent," _Prue concluded.

"What is an innocent?"

_"Just a regular person who hasn't been touched by evil."_

"Uh huh. This stuff is all really weird."

"Who are you talking to?" Piper asked.

"Prue. She claims that she's your sister."

_"Claims? Obviously I'm telling the truth."_

"Well now I know that."

_"I want to talk to them."_

It must have been odd looking to them. After all, it seemed that I was talking to myself. "I don't want to do that again."

_"Too bad." _She pushed me back. "Piper, Phoebe, it's me."

Piper's eyes searched her – my – face. "Prove it."

Prue sighed. "I was killed by the demon Shax. He almost killed you too, but Leo was able to save you. How many people know that?"

"Prue?" Phoebe whispered.

"You know it."

"This is incredible. Leo, how is this possible?"

"I'm not sure, but it may be because of the gap in power after Prue died. She was still tied to us, so she was stuck until everything got sorted out. I'll-"

"Go check with the Elders," Phoebe, Paige, Piper, and Prue chorused.

He orbed out.

"So what are my sisters protecting you from, Paige?" Prue asked. "You are an innocent, aren't you?"

Phoebe and Piper exchanged looks. "Actually…"

"She's our little sister."

"What?"

"Well, you remember Sam, right?" Phoebe asked.

"Of course," Prue said.

"Mom and Sam eventually had Paige and left her in a church. She was adopted. After you died, we met her."

"Oh… Well, it's nice to meet you, Paige. What powers do you have?"

"I can orb myself and other things," she said and demonstrated.

_"Whoa! That's magic? Neat." _I would have pestered Prue to show me more magic, but I didn't want to ruin their sisterly moment.

There was a short time of silence. They all just took everything in. Then they started to hug.

"I've missed you, Prue," Piper said.

"She turned into a fury," Phoebe said.

"Huh?"

"Long story." Phoebe smiled. "We have so much to discuss."

I felt more than a little out of place. This was the kind of situation in which I usually would have quietly sneaked away. However, I didn't have a way to get home and I didn't have my body. I was stuck.

For a while, I attempted to not listen to what they were saying. It wasn't my business. But I soon grew bored and tuned into their conversation.

"What are we going to do? I mean, your body is gone. Are you going to be trapped in there?" Piper asked.

"I don't know. I hope not, but right now it looks like this is how it's going to be."

Hmm… That did not seem like fun. I wasn't exactly that eager to share my body with this person for the rest of my life.

"The Elders will probably be able to fix this," Phoebe said.

"Somehow I doubt it."

_The Elders… What could the Elders be? Some sort of council of old people? I have no idea. I'm so clueless._

"How is this going to affect the Power of Three? Do you still have your powers?" Piper questioned.

"I don't know. I haven't tried yet."

"Try it."

My interested was piqued. I watched with fascination as she made a book rise into the air.

"Well, you still have that. What about astral projection?"

"Probably not. I'd need a body to do that."

Paige looked as out of place as I felt. _Well, she is only their half-sister. I'm guessing that now that Prue is back, she feels kind of unnecessary. _

"Try it anyways."

_Astral projection… Isn't that when a person's soul leaves their body?_

"Eep!" I cried. I had been kicked out of my body.

"It didn't work," Prue said with a frown.

I looked around at them. They seemed to be completely oblivious. "Can you see me?" I asked. They couldn't. "This is just great."

"Wait. Christy? She's gone." She closed her eyes and I was drawn back.

"It seems that the astral projection works to some extent. Hey, I'm back in control." I glanced at the clock and gasped. "My mom is going to kill me!"

"Paige can orb you home," Phoebe said. I could hear the pain in her voice. She didn't want to lose her sister again.

"I can explain all this to my mom and come back."

"No, Leo can just…"

"Orb me here all the time? That'll just be a big hassle."

"Well…"

"It's fine by me. This was turning out to be a pretty boring summer anyways." I had a million questions, but now was not the time to ask them. "Is there a hotel around here?"

"Hotel? No, you have to stay here."

I had a feeling that it was more for Prue's sake than for my own, but that was okay. I didn't mind. "Um, okay then. I'd better get to my mom before she calls the police."

Paige nodded and took my hand.

"Oh my God! Christina Eve Raven! What is going on?" My mother pulled me away from Paige. "Why did you take my baby?"

"Mom, don't call me your baby," I complained. "This is Paige Matthews. She's-"

"A whitelighter. I know that. What I don't know is why you took Christy."

I gaped at her. "You know about magic?"

"Of course I do."

"But how?"

"That's not the issue."

"I'm a Charmed One," Paige said. "This is kind of... complicated."

"You're a Charmed One? Wait. I remember you."

"You do?"

"Yes. You took Prue's place after she died."

"How do you know all this?" Paige was clearly as confused as I.

"I used to be a whitelighter. I clipped my wings in order to be with my husband."

"What?" I whispered.

"I was going to tell you eventually, Christy."

Talk about an overload of information.

"Well, then you'll understand this. Prue is stuck in Christy's mind."

"Her soul is caught there?"

"Yes. We'd like to bring her back to our house so that we can sort this out."

"Of course."

"Hold it. Sixteen years. Sixteen years and you could never find the time to tell me that you used to be a whitelighter? And what about magic? Why did you have to wait until all this went down?" This hurt. I just didn't understand.

"I didn't want you to know about this until you could handle it."

"Fine." I went up to my room.

_"Christina, are you all right?"_

"I'm fine."

_"You're upset."_

"Why shouldn't I be? No one ever told me about all this." I angrily stuffed clothes into my suitcase. "But I want to figure this out. I want help you."

_"The heart of a whitelighter," _I heard her murmur.

"I don't want to talk about that."

_"You know, depending on when you were conceived, you may have whitelighter genes."_

"I definitely don't want to think about that. I don't care if I'm half-whitelighter. This is too much to think about right now." I was so confused and upset. I didn't want to take on all this. It was too much.

_"I can help you if you talk to me."_

"Look, I told you that I don't want to talk about it, and I mean it. I don't even know you. My life was so normal, then you showed up and all hell broke loose. I was a normal girl with a normal life. In less than one day, that all went out the window."

_"I used to be normal too. Then I discovered my powers and my life changed." _

"Well… I don't have any powers. I'm just a mediator. You got that? I don't want to know about all this stuff. I just want to get you back into your body."

_"Of course."_

Her soft way annoyed me even more, but I wasn't going to get into a fight. I had known this woman for only a few hours. I had to give her a chance.

"You ready to go?" Paige asked from the doorway.

"Yes."

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to your parents?"

"No," I said simply.

She studied me, then touched me and we orbed out.

* * *

I stood at the window late that night. _So this is what San Francisco is like. _I probably would have enjoyed it more if I didn't have so many things nagging at my mind… including Prue. 

_"Thank you for doing this. I know that this is difficult for you, and I'm sorry for that."_

"It's no problem." I was partly glad that this had happened. If it had never occurred, who knows how long it would have been before my mother had told me. I was quiet as I contemplated the situation. My initial shock had died down. I was still annoyed with my mother, but I could understand her position. "Do you really think that I could have whitelighter genes?"

_"Yes. You could try some things to find out."_

"Not now." I wasn't ready for that step. I had enough to take in. I didn't need any other quirks. "I know that you've been through a lot today, but could you tell me a little more about yourself?"

She laughed. _"Christy, this is nothing compared to the other things I've been through. I'd be happy to tell you about myself."_

It had been the most amazing day ever. It had also been incredibly overwhelming. I couldn't help but wonder what the rest of the week had in store. Wondering was about the only thing I could do. I could only wait and watch.


	2. Magical Soup

I woke up the next morning to find myself in a strange room. I wasn't at home, so where was I? After a moment, it all came flooding back. A glance at the mirror confirmed that, yes, it had not been a dream.

_"Good morning," _Prue said.

"Morning. I'm guessing that today will be an eventful day."

_"Yes. We'll probably be dealing with the Elders."_

"Who are the Elders?"

_"They run the heavens."_

I analyzed her tone. "You and your sisters don't seem to think much of them."

_"Well, they've never helped us much. They mostly just tell us when we're doing something wrong."_

"Oh. Did you sleep well?"

_"I don't have a body, so I don't have to sleep."_

"Where did you go, then?"

_"I'm not quite sure. It might have been your dream."_

I couldn't remember what I had dreamt, but it still threw me off. "What did you see?"

_"Just some garbled images, nothing clear."_

Prue had a lot of tact. She knew precisely how to read anyone and everyone, and she was the kind of woman who could take control. Even though I had only known her for one day, I liked her. I found her past fascinating, especially her relationship with her sisters. Even though Prue had just given me the cliff notes on all their adventures, I had been captivated. Their bond was so strong that they were able to vanquish demons using the Power of Three. Part of that captivation owed to the fact that magic was so amazing; the other part owed to the fact that I was an only child and had never experienced such a strong bond.

I got ready, feeling a little uncomfortable. Yesterday had been so frantic that I had barely thought about the fact that Prue was quite aware of everything that I was doing. Now I realized it, and it was like having someone watching my every move. Needless to say, it was unnerving. I paused at the door, almost afraid of facing all these strangers.

_"Are you going out there?"_

"Yes," I said, a little embarrassed. I wasn't sure if Prue could hear my thoughts or not, but she was perceptive enough to tell what I was thinking. I cleared my throat, then grasped the handle and opened the door. I stepped out and glanced around.

_"Are you afraid of running into my family?" _she asked bluntly. There was an annoying knowing tone to her voice.

"No." I spoke quietly, not wanting to wake anyone. The result of that was that I sounded unconvincing. That didn't matter to me; I was lying, after all. I was always uneasy when I stayed in other people's homes, and I didn't even know these people. Prue was right. I didn't want to run into her sisters. This whole situation was so… weird. It was complicated, and I liked things simple.

_"But that's how you feel."_

"How would you know?" That may have sounded a little accusatory. I regretted saying it.

_"Your body reacts to your emotions, and I can feel your body perfectly well."_

"Huh. I thought that you had to be in control to feel what I feel."

_"Apparently not. Look, I know that you're uncomfortable with this-"_

She was really good at this. Being right seemed to be Prue's strong point. That would balance out my habit of guessing quite neatly.

_"-but my family is not uptight or anything. I'm probably the one that people like the least. So just relax."_

"Why would people not like you? I like you. You seem to be a good person."

_"Thanks. I'm a fairly controlling person."_

"You take charge. Someone's got to do it."

_"You're one the few who thinks that way."_

"How did you get so good at this, anyway?" I could see Prue as a scrupulous person, but she didn't seem like the type that would read emotions readily.

_"You have to notice all kinds of things when you're dealing with dark beings."_

Ugh. That subject again. The softer label of 'dark being' didn't help. I was not looking forward to any confrontations with demons. After all, this woman had been killed by a demon. If the… oh, what were they called? Ah, Charmed Ones. If the Charmed Ones were targets for demon attacks, I would certainly be involved with that. I grimaced at the thought, then found my way downstairs. "Erm… do you want to take over?" I felt like I was obligated to give her an even turn with my body. She was finally home, and the least I could do was let her enjoy her newfound life.

_"I don't think I should keep doing that until we figure out what kind of an effect my presence is having on you and your body."_

"That's very… meticulous."

_"That's how I like it."_

"But who cares?" I continued. "If something happens, we can probably fix it."

_"The 'probably' is what bothers me. You can't always fix things."_

"You should really take your own advice."

_"What advice?" _Her mind was obviously on other things.

"Relax. You're alive again. That's got to feel good."

_"I won't be able to relax until I figure out why this happened. This wasn't meant to happen. I was supposed to move on."_

"Maybe it wasn't your time."

_"But I felt it. I know that I was supposed to move on."_

"You're awfully pessimistic, you know. You could focus on some brighter possibilities. Why do you concentrate on the bad stuff?"

_"Because that's how it is in our family."_

"I'd hate to be in your family." Someone was in the kitchen. "Are you sure that you don't want to take over? I really don't mind." I was at a dead stop now. Usually I wasn't at all shy, but these people wanted Prue, not me. I felt I was keeping them from her.

_"Just go in. Piper's a great cook."_

"But-"

_"Go. I know that you're hungry."_

"That's kind of weird." I tried not to hesitate any further as I pushed on into the kitchen. You'd think that I was going to my own funeral by my constant hesitation. I had a tendency to be a drama queen. It was something that my friends teased me endlessly about. I was even annoyed at myself now, which encouraged me to move it along.

It was indeed Piper who was cooking in the kitchen.

"Hi," I said awkwardly.

"Morning." She seemed a great deal perkier today. "Do you like cheese omelets?"

"Uh… yeah."

_"Sit," _Prue commanded.

I obliged her. Why did she have to add herself to my internal conflict? She was trying to make me feel at home in this strange place. It was a nice thing, it really was… but there was still the problem of me - me and my drama queen tendencies. The two of us certainly had erupted back home yesterday… I pushed back the thought. I couldn't do anything about it until later. For now, I would just have to concentrate on the more pressing matters.

To get my mind off of the more unpleasant aspects of the last twenty-four hours, I studied Piper. Yesterday, of course, had been mostly a rush. All the details had blurred together in a strange, mystical vat of magic soup. Normally, I didn't care much for minute details. This situation, however, was significantly unusual.

Piper had the illusion of being someone who was timid and withdrawn. Prue had confirmed that that was in some ways true, but she had also told me the Piper had a hidden fiery core. I could almost see that in her when I looked closely enough. Once I saw it, I could practically sense the power emanating from her. _She must have gained some of that when she took over for Prue. _I couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose one's older sister and then have to take over for her. _It must have been awful. _

All of a sudden, I realized what Piper was doing. "Oh, you really don't have to cook for me. I mean, I'd be fine with cereal…"

"It's no trouble. I always cook for my sisters." After the last word, her eyes kind of glazed over. She turned away a little so that I couldn't see her face clearly. She made a pretense of checking the eggs, but her emotions were clear. Though I didn't know her, I could easily gather that she was frustrated. Her sister was alive again, but she couldn't see her. There happened to be a sixteen-year-old in her way. My interference wasn't what she needed right now. She needed her sister.

"If you want to talk to her, I can just let her take over," I said slowly.

"No."

_"No."_

They spoke at the same time, but their tones were different. It made for a nice chord, but it was one put me back in square one. It seemed that I wasn't going to make any advancements on this issue any time soon.

"No, we should really get this worked out first," she finished, a wistful look in her eyes.

They were certainly on the same wavelength on that issue, but for different reasons. Prue felt the way she did because that's what she believed was right. Piper felt that way because she was an overly polite person. It was a matter of manners for her. With Prue, I had a chance at arguing - even if I was doomed to lose. With Piper, though, there was just no winning for anyone.

_I'm going all philosophical here. I wonder if it's because of Prue. Can she really have an affect on my brain? Well, she is able to influence my body. I suppose that it could be because of her. _

The muffled sensation in the room disappeared as Piper placed a plate in front of me. The food was definitely picture-perfect. Neither of my parents had ever been very good cooks. My mother thought that the food was done when it was blackened, and my father had nearly set the kitchen on fire when he had attempted to cook. I felt like I was getting the royal treatment. "Thank you."

_"Oh dear," _Prue murmured.

I decided to try to ask her what she had motivated her to say that. _What do you mean by that? _I directed the thought towards her, hoping that she would hear it.

_"I think that Piper's getting you mixed up with me. That's my favorite breakfast."_

Another mystery was solved. _Maybe she just had an urge to make this, _I responded. I tried some and found that the egg was as delicious as it looked.

_"Coincidences don't occur in this family."_

_Is that an absolute law? _It wasn't meant to be a cheeky question. You never could tell with this family. Prue had told me some pretty weird stuff about the Halliwell family. It seemed like they had been through it all. I couldn't wait to hear about Paige's adventures.

_"Almost."_

Prue was curious about Paige too. There had been little time for bonding the previous day. _Not enough hours in the day. _I was careful to make sure that I didn't direct all my thoughts toward Prue. I did want some privacy. It was a good thing I wasn't one of those people who kept everyone out. This whole situation would have been hell.

"Good morning," Phoebe said in a singsong voice as she entered the room. Paige followed her closely, not saying a word. She looked as though she hadn't slept much. Perhaps she had been up thinking. Of all the sisters, Paige seemed like the one I could relate most to. She wasn't fitting into this equation very well either. Phoebe, on the other hand, looked refreshed. She and Piper were clearly renewed by the rebirth of their sister.

I felt an odd pulling sensation. It was like I was trying to be in two places at once. It kind of reminded me of how I felt when I couldn't make my mind up, which happened a lot. It took me a moment to realize that I wasn't the one who was feeling that. It was Prue. Finally, I was on the receiving end of this unique relationship. I would have been smug if it hadn't been for the fact that there was pain mixed in with the pulling feeling. She felt as guilty as I did. It was good to know that I wasn't alone.

_Are you absolutely, positively certain that you don't want to take over?_

_"Yes," _she said irritably.

An annoyed Prue was something that I didn't know how to deal with, so I quickly tried to get her on a different track. _Can you taste the eggs? _It was kind of stupid question, but it would at least make her think about something else.

_"Yes. I told you Piper was a good cook."_

_It's way better than the charbroiled stuff that my mom makes. _

The pained feeling was ebbing away. I could almost feel a little happiness sliding in. But Prue was a fighter in every way, and she didn't seem to want to let her guard down for a bit of happiness.

"Morning, you two."

The sisters settled down at the table. Their attention was turned to me. It was like they expected me to suddenly morph into Prue. Honestly, that would have been a good thing. It would have been much easier.

"Did you sleep well, Christy?" Phoebe asked me.

Phoebe, as Prue had informed me, had once been a rebel. It was hard to see a rebel in the woman before me. She seemed so composed and professional, though I could tell that she was more laid back than her sisters. Well, Prue and Piper. Paige was unknown to Prue and me.

"Yes, really well." It was basically the truth. I had talked with Prue for a long time, but when I had gotten to sleep, I had slept well. San Francisco was a lot like New York City in certain ways, but there were a few things that were different. I was fiercely loyal to my city, but San Francisco was going to grow on me.

"San Francisco is a bit different than New York, but they're alike in many ways," Phoebe commented.

_Whoa. Is she a mind reader?_

_"No, Phoebe isn't a telepath. I would hate to see her as one. It would probably be as bad as being an empath."_

_A whatsit? _

_"Empath. Someone who can feel what other people feel," _she clarified. _"I was once given empathic powers for a short time. That something that I didn't get into last night."_

_Oh. _There was a lot of stuff out in the world of magic. I could see that I was in for quite a ride when it came to learning the quirks of this secret little world.

"We're going to be looking through the Book of Shadows today. I don't think there will be anything in there, but you never know," Piper informed me.

I was eager to take a look at the mysterious Book of Shadows. Prue had described it to me, but she hadn't described it in much detail.

_"Where's Leo?"_ Prue wondered.

"Where's Leo?" I asked automatically.

This didn't register with them at first. It wasn't surprising; I barely knew anything about Leo, other than the fact that he was a whitelighter and that he was Piper's husband. Prue had told me the story. I thought it was so sweet.

"Er… I mean, Prue wants to know where Leo is."

"Well, the Elders are reportedly in a frenzy up there. At first, they didn't believe Leo. But after they saw you, they changed their minds."

"They can see me?" The Elders were starting to seem a little freaky.

"Yeah, they can watch over people from their lofty perch," Phoebe put in. Their distaste for the Elders was quite evident. Even if I had no background on them, I would have been able to see that. However, I had background, and I was very sympathetic with Piper.

"Anyways, they're trying to figure out how this happened. They're not ruling out the possibility that this was the work of a demon."

Paige still hadn't said a word. She didn't strike me as the shy type, so it had to be because of Prue.

Whoa. Whole new sensation. Prue was concentrating her attention on Paige. It seemed like she was trying to get a read on her. But what else was in that emotion? It felt like… curiosity. Consideration, perhaps? It was hard to tell. She had a mask over all her feelings. Why was that?

All of a sudden, a man appeared out of nowhere. But he wasn't quite like a man. He looked deformed. _What the hell? _was the first thought that came to mind. That was followed by another, more logical thought. _Huh. It must be a demon. A demon! _A split second later, Prue was in control. She knocked the demon down with her telekinesis. He jumped back up and threw a ball of fire at Piper. She froze it.

"Fireball!" Paige cried and threw the mass of blue light back at the demon. It didn't kill him.

They all attacked him. It happened so quickly that it was almost a blur. Somehow, the demon erupted into a collection of flames and disappeared.

_"Prue, you rock!"_

Hold on. She was smiling. She was actually smiling.

"It's good to be alive again."

_"That's the spirit." _

Purposefully she turned to Paige. "Nice orbing," she said smoothly. It was interesting how she could take my voice and make it completely different. The sisters wouldn't have much trouble differentiating the two of us.

"Thanks," Paige said. She looked relieved.

Another man appeared, but this time it was Leo.

"Hi there." Piper kissed him.

_"Aww. How adorable." _I was a sucker when it came to a good love story. Piper and Leo's story definitely qualified there.

"Any news?"

"Yes. The Elders have a few main theories on this situation, and they'd like to talk to the four – five of you."

"They're allowing us up there?"

"Yes."

Piper studied his face. "Is there bad news about this?"

"A little."

Jeez. And I thought this had been an uneasy situation. Now I would have to face the high and mighty ones. _"Prue, you are not going to go back into your comfort zone."_

_They'll want to talk to you too, _she assured me, not without certain smugness.

I was going to have to face them._ "Dang it!"_


	3. Prue's Fury

**A/N: thank you, ProtectionPaige, for reviewing. Cole will be in this chapter, as will a whole lot of hate. **

_"You talk to them first," _I said to Prue.

_Are you ordering me around?_

_"Yes. I do not want to face those people." _If they were able to go against the Charmed Ones, they had to be pretty powerful, and I had a feeling that they would easily have influence over me. I didn't like it when people had power over me. In addition to that, there was the fact that if I wasn't comfortable around Prue's family, who she happened to like, how would I fare around people that she hated? The odds were stacked against me when it came to the Elders. This was all about Prue, so she could face them.

_It's not like they're evil._

_"That's not the way you describe them," _I pointed out.

_Well, it's not like they're going to try to kill you. _

_"Are saying that you don't want to face them?"_

_No. It's just that if you have to face them, you should be confident about it. _

_"Confident? I'm not even confident around your sisters." _

_Why is that?_

_"Your sisters are way powerful. And since the Elders run the heavens, they must be pretty powerful too."_

_Yeah, but they don't act like it. Just relax. _

_"Oh, I'm relaxed." _

_Good, _she said cheerfully, choosing to ignore my sarcastic tone. Strange. I would have thought that she wouldn't have taken that. _Don't worry. I'll do most of the talking. _

She had done it again. She had used that uncharacteristic soft, comforting way. There were many unusual things about Prue. Her traits didn't seem to match very well. Was that how she always was? Or was that just how she was with me? She didn't seem like the kind of person who would treat people differently, but she had already proven that she was one woman about whom you could not gather assumptions very easily. In fact, she made that as difficult as possible. It was like a way of keeping people locked out. Was Prue afraid of getting hurt? I couldn't imagine her like that. She was so strong. It felt like there was no force that could knock her down. Yet she had been knocked down. She was dead, after all. Still, not even death had kept her down. She was alive, in a manner of speaking. I knew that I would have quite a time trying to figure Prue out.

That was a challenge that, oddly enough, I found myself yearning to measure up to. Usually, I took people's personalities exactly as they presented them. It was how they wanted to be seen, and who was I to argue? But I was arguing now, even if it wasn't directly with Prue. By analyzing her, I was taking apart her personality in order to better understand her. That wasn't what I normally did, but this was in no way a normal situation. Change was something that you had to accept, and you had to change yourself so that you could adjust properly. I rolled that thought around and decided that I liked it. I had never been as thoughtful as I had been in the past day. I was changing myself in order to conform to the situation. It was a good thing, a very good thing. Perhaps this would make me a better person. Perhaps it would improve who I was.

The optimism really wasn't helping at all. It was only a temporary distraction. In fact, it was stopping me from finding out what was going on. Optimism definitely didn't suit me. Refreshingly annoyed with myself, I listened to the conversation.

"Do they really want us all to come?" Piper questioned Leo.

"Yes. They think that that would be best."

"You sound awfully pessimistic, Leo," Phoebe said, her head tilted to the side thoughtfully. "What are they saying?"

"It'd be easier if you just talked directly with them."

"The Elders rarely ever make things easier," Prue said. "But we should get this over with."

My nerves went off at once. Even though my body wasn't under my control, I could still feel myself going off. At least I had constant influence over my body in some ways, even though it was only in a small way when I was pushed back. Prue, on the other hand, didn't share my attitude towards that influence.

_Christy, you're making me nervous as hell. _

_"Well, I'm sorry about that, but that happens to be how I feel."_

_Can't you take any comfort in the fact that you're going to see heaven without having to die?_

_"That would be an interesting thing." _But that didn't mean that I was ready. Before I had a chance to prepare myself, Leo orbed us 'up there'. 'Up there' turned out to be very… white. It was blindingly bright. And it was a building. There were columns and everything. It was definitely not what I had expected. I mean, I had expected clouds… robed figures… Just as I was thinking that, about twenty people dressed in golden robes appeared in the room. _Whoa. Talk about foreshadowing, _I thought to myself.

The figures put down their hoods. They don't look very old. Of course, Leo didn't look very dead, but he technically was. Appearances were often deceiving in this world.

One of the Elders approached me. His eyes sharply examined me. I really didn't like him. I probably would have squirmed under his gaze, but Prue stared back with equal determination. If it had been a battle of wills, they would have been at a standstill. I could feel that she didn't quite trust this Elder in particular. After a long stare, he broke eye contact.

"I can see her spirit in this girl," he announced. "And her powers as well." He turned to back to Prue. "Welcome back, Prudence."

"It's good to be back. Who are you?" She barely blinked as she faced him. She was good.

"My name is Gideon." He extended his hand. Prue didn't take it. "I normally do not reside in the heavens."

"And why is that?"

"I run a school of magic on Earth," he responded coolly. "But the entire council of Elders was called for this occasion."

"I see."

The tension between these two powers was intense. I was aching to alleviate some of it, but Prue had so much control over the situation that I couldn't do anything. She held a powerful grip that couldn't be loosened. I was impressed, but I knew that she wouldn't have this kind of a reaction to the other Elders. No, there was different about this Elder, something that neither Prue nor I liked one bit.

"Well, now that we know that Prudence truly inhabits this girl's body, let us go to a more private place," a different Elder said.

Leo seemed to take that as his cue and hung back. Piper saw this and tried to lead him into the room.

"It would be better if your whitelighter-" the same Elder started to say.

"Husband," Piper corrected.

_"Ooh, go Piper." _

"And we think it would better if he came," she continued.

"Piper, go ahead," Leo said quietly.

I did not like how these Elders were treating Leo. Only Gideon and another Elder seemed to not be shooting daggers at Leo. It wasn't fair that they were treating him so poorly. He was a good man. He could have taken me as a crazy person and left forever, but he had helped me.

Hmm… Gideon didn't dislike Leo. If he did, he hid it very well. Gideon was quite different from the other Elders, and mostly not in good ways. He seemed to be someone who you did not want to get involved with.

_Do you sense anything about him?_

_"I think so. There's something off about him. I don't like him."_

_If you can sense something, then it must be especially powerful. I hope my sisters sense it too. _She looked at them. They didn't appear to notice anything about the mysterious Gideon. In fact, it even seemed that Paige was checking him out.

_"It doesn't look like they do."_

Prue didn't respond. She just kept studying Gideon as we were led into the other room. I couldn't tell what was going through her mind. She, like me, was able to keep certain thoughts private. Though I couldn't hear her thoughts, I could feel that her mind was working on exactly who Gideon was. Her frustration was quite evident.

"Sit," Gideon instructed.

Prue took her time getting situated. She had great gall. When she did get settled, she maintained her steely look.

_"Uh, Prue, maybe you shouldn't do that. You have no idea what I look like when I have an attitude."_

_This is hardly an attitude. You should see me when I get angry. _

_"I think I'd prefer not to see that." _I resigned myself to silence, not wanting to incur her wrath.

"Well, this is a unique situation indeed," Gideon began.

_Thanks for cluing us in._

"And it is unique for a good reason. Two souls cannot inhabit the same body, especially when one soul possesses supernatural powers. One soul becomes the dominant soul, and the body adjusts to that soul. Therefore, if the body is harmed, the lesser soul departs for death while the dominant soul revives the body. That is our theory, at least."

"I don't like to work with theories," Prue said.

"That is how it must be for now. As I was saying, the double inhabitance does not affect the body in any other way. Switching off is perfectly acceptable."

I had an urge to say 'I told you so' to Prue, but she way too tense to be shown up. I maintained my silence.

"However, it is not suitable for you. You have faced a demon already, and word of your powers is likely spreading throughout the Underworld. We have no reason to believe that those running the Underworld know that it is you who has those powers, but they will certainly be interested in a youth with the power that you held. If they are able to find out that you have returned, they will try to come after you."

"I'm quite used to that. I can defend myself just fine."

"We fully realize that, but there is a problem with that. You won't be able to keep constant control."

"But I'll be able to jump into control any time I need to."

"Yes, but we believe that you should make sure that you become the dominant soul. If you do that, you will be able to be in control at all times. You'll be able to allow the girl-"

"Christina. Her name is Christina."

"Yes," he said silkily. "She will be able to control her body at times, but you will have to give her permission."

"Permission? This is her body. I'm the one who should get permission."

"It won't harm her in any way."

"How do you know? You said that you're basing this all on theories. This is has never happened before. You have no idea how this could affect her. You don't know how this could end. You need to figure this out before you start making plans for me."

"There is no way that this could harm her soul. As long as her body is kept safe, she will live on. There is nothing to worry about."

"I couldn't disagree more." They locked eyes again. This time, Gideon seemed more uncomfortable and less confident. _Just look at him squirm. _She was pleased with this development. I wasn't as sure about it. Maybe he was just putting up a front; maybe he wanted her to think that she was winning. In any case, it was Phoebe who interrupted their silent battle.

"We've established the situation. Now, what is it that you plan to do?"

Gideon seemed glad to shift his attention from Prue to Phoebe. "First, we must determine if Christina has any powers of her own."

"How will you do that?"

"By asking her mother." At that, my mother walked in. A stab of pain hit me. I was still a little angry with her for not telling me who she truly was, but that was overwhelmed by guilt. I had stormed out of there in anger without giving her a bit of credit. I wanted to apologize, but here was not the proper place and this certainly wasn't the right time. It would have to wait.

Hang on. The subject of powers had been brought up again. Oy. It would neat to have powers, but it was too big. The Charmed Ones had powers, and they were constantly battling demons. I only wanted to be a normal teen. Normality seemed to have stricken from my life, though. Would it be so bad to have some powers to make up for that loss? I supposed not, but the greater part of me was hoping that I would not have any special abilities. It would just be too weird. Though I had admired the mysticism of magic back when it wasn't real, this was different - this was real. If I did find out that I had powers, there was no going back. I would be stuck with them forever. The finality of that was what scared me the most. I couldn't give my powers back if I found that something bad went with them.

"Hello, Gideon," my mother said calmly. "I thought you started school for those with magical ability."

"I did. I have to address this issue, though."

"Ah, yes. The fourth Charmed One is in my daughter's body. Any idea how that happened?"

"Not as of yet." He didn't seem too pleased with my mother. I could see that it was because of me. He didn't seem to like the fact that my parents had had me. I really didn't care about his opinion, though.

"Why did you summon me here?"

"We summoned you because we need to know if Christina has any powers. It will affect how we approach the situation."

She looked at me carefully. I knew that if she had a choice, she would have told me first. My mother was like that. She hadn't meant to hold back before; that's just how it turned out. I saw that now. However, now was the moment of truth. Now she would reveal whether or not I had powers. From this point on, things could either continue on their path or they could shift to a new path that incorporated my gifts. If I had any powers, everything would change. My nerves showed up again, but Prue didn't say anything.

"Christina-" she began.

The moment had arrived. I tensed.

"-does not have any powers. I didn't have her until long after I had clipped my wings. She is not part whitelighter."

So it would all continue on the current path. I was torn between relief and a bit of longing. However, as I looked at the Elders and how lives could get so complicated with the aid of magic, relief won out. Once I helped Prue, I could move on and return to my normal life. Everything was going to turn out okay.

_Strange. I could have sworn that you would have powers._

_"Well, I don't. Why would think that I would?"_

_It's how you feel, how your body feels. Plus there's a reason why I was drawn to you. Why else did I end up in a body that was far from my sisters?_

_"Maybe it's just because of my mother. She seems to know a lot about what happened after she left."_

_That's not surprising. She probably kept a few connections. Even when a whitelighter leaves, they usually want to keep informed. But I don't think that that's the only reason why. There's some other reason, and I'm going to find out what that reason is._

_"Why?"_

_Because I have the tools. _

Like Prue, the Elders didn't seem satisfied with that answer. There were quite a few murmurs throughout the council, most of which had a discontented tone to them. Why were they all searching for some greater explanation? Why couldn't they just accept it as it was? It was probably caused by the same thing that caused me to explore Prue's hidden depths. I couldn't put my finger on exactly what that force was, but it was still there.

"Is that a problem?" mom asked.

"It is strange that Prudence's soul would be drawn to someone who had no powers," said Gideon.

"But this a new experience. You don't know why she would even be drawn back to life, let alone to Christina." Mom knew them well. It was weird to see her like this. But then again, everything else had been strange lately.

Gideon turned back to us. "We would like to hear from Christina."

Nope. I was not moving. If only I could mentally hold on…

Suddenly, I was in control. Prue was very discreet. How I hated that.

_No, I don't want to do this. They don't like me. I can tell._

_"They don't like the fact that your mother had you."_

"Christina, please describe how this happened."

"Well… I was in my room yesterday when I suddenly blacked out. I woke up a minute later and my head hurt like hel-heck." It didn't seem proper to swear in front of the Elders. "Prue's voice came to me out of nowhere. To prove that she was real, she had me call her sisters. After it turned out that she was real, she tried to explain everything. That's when I saw my reflection. Instead of seeing myself, I saw Prue."

"You saw her reflection?"

"Yes."

There were more murmurs at this. I nervously shifted. What was so special about me seeing her?

Gideon quieted the others. "And how did you get to San Francisco?"

"Prue had me call upon Leo."

Now they even gasped. Big whoop. I could call Leo. What was the big deal? They discussed this softly.

"That is all we need from you right now," Gideon dismissed us.

_That was… interesting._

_"Yes, it was." _

They weren't telling us something, and it was obvious that it was because of Gideon. I was starting to understand their distaste for the Elders.

* * *

"So this is the Book of Shadows, huh?" I looked over the cover. There was a symbol on it that I didn't recognize. "What's that?"

_"A Triquetra. It's a symbol of the Power of Three."_

"Power of Four now. There are four parts. I think you're the circle - you'll keep them together."

_"I swear, you definitely have the disposition of a whitelighter."_

"However, I am not a whitelighter. I'm not even half of a whitelighter."

_"Half-whitelighter."_

"What's the difference?"

_"Saying that you're not half of a whitelighter makes it seem like there's something missing."_

"Okay…" I let the subject drop and moved to a different one. "Are you sure I should be up here alone?"

_"My sisters will be up in a minute. Piper is probably getting the kitchen in order. She doesn't like to leave things unfinished. And it's not like you're a demon."_

"Those things are nasty."

_"You haven't even seen the worst of them."_

"And I hope not to. Are they all in this book?"

_"Most of them."_

"Well, let's take a look, then." I went over to the Book.

_"I wouldn't do-"_

I opened the book.

_"-that." _She sounded stunned.

"What?" I asked.

_"That's not what was supposed to happen."_

"What do you mean?"

_"The Book usually defends itself from those who don't have good magic. That includes all innocents."_

"How does it defend itself?"

_"It shoots away from people. If a demon tries to touch it, it zaps them."_

"That's one powerful book." I looked at the first page. "Is this what gave you your powers?"

_"Yes." _She still seemed puzzled.

"Maybe it senses you in me. That's a logical explanation."

_"I suppose."_

"You have an influence on my body. It doesn't sense a nonmagical person. It senses you." I came across one page that had a picture of red-skinned demon. It looked rather malicious. "Belthazor. You ever run into him?"

She didn't respond.

"Prue?"

_"Yes, actually. We did run into him."_

"What, bad vanquish or something?"

_"You could say that."_

"You could, but you wouldn't, would you?"

_"It's complicated."_

"And that's different from the rest of your life how?"

_"Bad blood."_

"Figuratively?"

_"Yes."_

She was shying away from the subject insistently. I wasn't about to back off, though. I wanted to know. "Did he really hate you?"

_"At first."_

"At first? What, did he grow a heart?"

_"I don't believe so."_

"Is he dead?"

_"I'm pretty sure that he is."_

"But you're not certain. Why is this like pulling teeth?"

_"You know how I told you how I can get really angry?"_

"Yeah…"

_"Well, talking about him is one way to assure that I do get angry."_

"Gottcha."

_"That's good."_

Paige and Piper came in. "Sorry that took so long. Let's…" Piper stopped when she saw that I was touching the Book. "How… can you do that?"

"I think it's because of Prue."

Paige saw the picture of Belthazor and flinched. Why would she flinch? What were they hiding?

"Do you know anything about this demon?" I asked casually.

_"Christy…"_

"Um, yes, we do." She looked away. Piper too avoided my eyes.

"Really? Well, Prue-"

_"Don't you dare blame this on me!"_

"-wants to know-"

_"I'm warning you, Christina!"_

"-if you managed to vanquish him."

"Oh. Well…" She didn't continue. This was getting annoying. She looked towards the door. "Hold that thought." Both she and Paige approached the door. Piper opened it to reveal that Phoebe was standing with a fairly handsome man.

_"Phoebe!" _Prue roared.

Fury more intense than I had ever felt reverberated through my body. I thought she was going to kill Phoebe. I tried to hold her back. Phoebe was okay by me; I didn't want to see Prue kill her. However, Prue took over and ran over to them.

"PHOEBE HALLIWELL!"

Huh. So I really could yell that loudly.

"What is wrong with you?"

Even though she saw me, I could tell that Phoebe was intimidated.

"Prue, I can explain."

"No, you can't. Didn't you go through enough hell with him?" She spoke as though the man weren't there. He seemed to be accustomed to that.

"Look, I don't need two of you ganging up on me," Phoebe said.

"Piper finally came to her senses?"

"No, I'm talking about Paige. You and Paige both can't believe that he is good."

"That's because he isn't!" Prue and Paige both said.

"Prue, his demon side is gone."

_"Demon side? Demon?" _Was this man a demon? If he was, I could understand Prue's reaction.

"I don't care!" she growled. "I told you to move on."

"Prue, you died. We were lost without you."

"So you found comfort in him. Sorry if I can't find the sentiment in that."

"Prue-"

"No." Phoebe fell silent under her gaze.

_"Okay. Time out. Don't you think you're overreacting, Prue?"_

_No. He's a demon. He's Belthazor._


	4. Bonds That Tie and Imprison

**A/N: Clairebear21 and ProtectionPaige, thank you for reviewing. Ah, Cole. He will be causing a lot of tension between Phoebe and Prue. But I will not be turning him evil.**

_"Whoa. Hold on. Just stop. That dude is Belthazor? Shouldn't he look more like a, well, demon?" _He didn't look anything like the picture.

_He's half demon, half human._

_"Interesting. Is he evil?"_

_He was at first. Then he fell in love with Phoebe._

_"Demons can fall in love?"_

_They can if they're half human. _

_"Ah. That whole half demon thing is still kind of iffy." _

_Which is exactly what I reacted the way I did. _

She turned her attention away from me and back to Phoebe and Belthazor. "And what do you mean, his demon side is gone?"

"Belthazor was vanquished when we faced a demon by the name of Sikes." She didn't meet Prue's eyes, though.

"What else are you not telling me?"

"I'm telling you everything, Prue."

"Like hell you are."

_"Prue, maybe you should take a deep breath or something."_

She didn't bother to answer. She was concentrating completely on Phoebe. No wonder she had chosen to leave out this part of Phoebe's history. She really hated this guy. She wouldn't even address him directly. That was understandable, considering the fact that he apparently used to be a demon. So Phoebe had dated a demon, a creature that they were supposed to fight against. Her anger was justified.

However, I found that a little pity for Phoebe was sneaking in. It must have been hard on her. She couldn't control who she loved, and the fact that she was supposed to hate him must have complicated things. Then again, what if she had done this just to spite Prue? She certainly had done enough against Prue when they were younger. But that was the thing - they had been younger then.

How could I be considering all this? I didn't know these people. I had to stay neutral. But I didn't like being neutral. I usually had strong view that I maintained no matter what. I really wanted to side with one of them, but it wasn't my place. No, I couldn't tell them what to do. I couldn't mediate either. It seemed that Prue would definitely not allow me to be in control while Phoebe was around now. Well, at least she would get some time with her sisters. So there was an up side to this debate. Nonetheless, there was still the fact that Prue was pissed off. That wasn't good for anyone, especially Phoebe. This was, without a doubt, going to affect my health.

The fury suddenly settled to an even pulse of anger. That was good… right? Why had it stopped? What was going on? I carefully examined her emotions. There was that overwhelming anger, but there was something else. Was it distrust? Yes, there was a little of that, but that wasn't what was calming the rage. Wait, was she dying? No, she was just looking at Phoebe. She was looking at her - no, her hand - very closely. There was a ring on Phoebe's hand. But that wasn't just any ring. That was an… _engagement_ ring. It couldn't possibly be anything else. Oh God. The mysterious feeling was shock. Horror. Absolute horror! She wasn't calming down; she was getting ready to come down on Phoebe even more. Now she was trying to comprehend what she was seeing. Once it hit her fully… Well, I didn't want to be Phoebe once she realized it.

Phoebe saw her looking and casually put her hand behind her back. This set Prue off. And, oh, she went off. Like a bomb, in fact. Maybe if they had had Prue as a cop, there would be no crime. I highly doubted that anyone, anywhere would want to face Prue when she got really angry. I would have shielded my eyes, or ran away, but I could do neither. I had to watch, no matter how terrifying Prue truly got.

"Oh, no you don't!" she cried and grabbed Phoebe's hand. That ring stood out, taunting her. "No. You didn't." Her mouth hung open. "You couldn't have." Her voice was low now, but it was steadily increasing. She took a deep breath. How loud could she yell? "YOU – YOU GOT ENGAGED?" She could yell that loudly. She gave a whole new meaning to the Richter scale. "TO HIM? YOU GOT ENGAGED TO A DEMON!"

"He's not a demon anymore," Phoebe said desperately.

"I am so sure." Half of the things in the attic rose up and fell to the ground. Prue paid no attention to that. Her focus was locked on Phoebe and that hateful ring. I rather believed that she hated the ring more than she hated the man who gave it. What was his name? Prue hadn't even bothered to name him, or even recognize that he was standing right there. If he were a demon, wouldn't he stand up to Prue or something? Maybe Phoebe was telling the truth. I wasn't going to tell that to Prue, however. She was terrifying right at that moment.

Though I didn't have the courage necessary to calm Prue, Piper did. She stepped between the feuding sisters and pried Prue's hand off of Phoebe's hand. Phoebe looked grateful. Prue was not. "Stop," Piper said. "What are you doing, Prue?"

"I'm doing what has to be done."

"Phoebe is telling the truth. Belthazor is not a part of Cole anymore. You have to accept that."

Prue stared at Piper, but the stare was softer than the one she had used on Phoebe.

"Please, Prue."

"Fine. I'll accept that Cole isn't Belthazor, but I will not allow Phoebe to marry him, and I will not believe that he's good."

"Don't do this," Piper pleaded.

"Don't do what?"

"Don't push Phoebe away. You two have got to work this out."

"But not now. Now, it's time for Cole to leave."

"Prue," Phoebe started.

"It's all right, Phoebe," Cole said. They kissed. Piper held Prue back and Cole left.

"What is wrong with you, Prue?" Phoebe snarled. "He didn't do anything to you."

"I can't trust him. And I don't want to see you dead."

"He loves me. He wouldn't hurt me."

"He may say that, but he doesn't mean it."

"Yes, he does. Why can't you believe it?"

"Because he was a demon. He could embrace evil again. Then where would you be? Do you even know?"

"He wouldn't do that."

"You have no way of knowing that."

"For God's sake, would you two cut it out?" Piper interrupted. "Prue, you've only been back for two days. Can't you two stop fighting? We've been given a new chance."

"Piper, that doesn't change anything. We still have to work these things out," said Prue.

"But you're not even hearing Phoebe. We should all calm down before we say things that we don't mean."

"I mean all these things because they're true. I care about you, Phoebe."

"If you cared about me, you would trust what I tell you."

"I can't," she said simply.

"Fine." She walked out.

Was that how sisters were? Perhaps it was better to be an only child. Phoebe and Prue could create a tempest. Piper was the third party in all that. Where was Paige?

Huh. She was gone.

* * *

"Prue, have you ever tried meditation? Or yoga?" I asked her the next morning.

_"No."_

She was still in ill humor. "Did you have high blood pressure?"

_"Who doesn't these days?"_

"I'd wager that Piper doesn't. She's so calm."

_"She's the middle sister. That's how it's always been. But there are some things that can get her worked up."_

"If she's anything like you at those times, I would love to never see her like that."

_"I wasn't that bad, was I?"_

"Are you kidding? You're still angry. Maybe you should talk to Phoebe. But you have to have Leo there."

_"Leo? Why?"_

"Well, if you two happen to try to tear out each other's hair, he'll be able to fix you right up. Plus, he can't become a causality."

She laughed. It was a small laugh, but it was something.

"That's better. Do you feel calmer?"

_"For now."_

"Then when you see Phoebe, you'll blow your top again, right?"

_"I'll try to control myself."_

"I don't see what the big deal is. Cole's a human now. Can he really become evil again?"

_"Yes."_

"Well, if he does, you can just vanquish him. Easy enough."

I could sense that she wanted to argue, but she was sick of arguing.

I picked up two shirts and turned to the mirror. "Hmm. Green or blue?" I switched off, trying to see which one would look best. "You look good in blue," I decided.

_"You're the only one who will see how I look in this."_

"I know. I look pretty good in blue too, though I think I'm starting to forget what I look like."

_"Is that even possible?"_

I rolled my eyes. "It was a joke, Prue."

_"Oh."_

"Did you ever enjoy yourself when you were in your own body?"

_"Yes. But there were times to be serious." _

"And that time was basically all your life. Did you sacrifice everything for the Power of Three?"

_"More or less."_

"Depressing. I couldn't stand to live like that."

_"I got used to it."_

"But you shouldn't have been forced to do that."

_"Tell that to the forces of destiny."_

"If I ever meet destiny, I'll be sure to mention that. Are you ready?"

_"Ready for what?"_

"Ready to face Phoebe. Before you say anything to her, run it by me. Then you'll hear what it sounds like and you won't have to regret what you say."

_"Regrets are a waste of time."_

"But they still happen. Maybe you don't regret it now, but you'll regret it later."

_"I doubt that."_

"Okay. Do you like disagreeing all the time?"

_"I don't disagree all the time."_

"Maybe I should use reverse psychology on you."

_"Thanks for the warning."_

"Huh. That's a start."

_"What do you mean?"_

"Well, you didn't argue. You were almost humorous. That's a definite start. You're calm?"

_"I'm calm."_

"Good." I went down to the kitchen. Piper, Phoebe, Paige, and Leo were there. "Morning." I was starting to get more comfortable with them.

Phoebe eyed me warily.

"Don't worry," I reassured her. "It's not Prue."

_"You didn't have to warn her."_

_Hey, I thought you were calm. Count to ten and don't think about yesterday._

I knew that there would be more problems involving Cole and Phoebe. Prue was stubborn, and so was Phoebe. It would take a miracle to get them to work out their differences. Prue had already received one miracle. Could she get another? She certainly deserved it, now more than ever.

"We should probably look in the Book today since we didn't get a chance yesterday," Piper said.

Wrong thing to say. Prue's anger flared up a little.

_Calm. _

_"I'm fine."_

"But I don't think that there's going to be anything in it that could help us. Still, it's worth a look."

_"Can't I just talk with Phoebe really quickly?"_

_No. _

"Maybe we could try to determine who caused this to happen," Paige said. "There might be a spell that could help with that."

_I think that's the most she's said since I got here. _

_"It's because of me."_

_Don't be silly, Prue._

_"She's intimidated by me."_

_With that display yesterday, I wouldn't be surprised. _

"That's a good idea. We'll-" Phoebe suddenly gasped and closed her eyes. For some reason, I did the same. I saw myself standing before the Elders.

"You must undergo the test," vision Gideon said and sent me to dark room. My own scream was the last thing I heard.

"Now that's the most realistic daydream ever," I muttered.

"Did you… Did you see something?" Phoebe asked.

"Um… yeah. It happened really quickly."

The sisters exchanged looks.

"What did you see?" Leo asked.

"Well, I saw myself facing the Elders. Gideon told me that I had to-"

"Undergo a test," Phoebe finished. "Then he sent you-"

"To a dark room. And then I heard-"

"Yourself screaming."

"Yeah. You saw that too?"

She nodded numbly. "Leo, what does this mean?"

"I don't know. But I should go tell Gideon."

Prue took control. "You can't do that, Leo."

"Why?"

"Christy and I both felt this threatening feel from him. I don't think that any of us should face Gideon. Stay away from him."

"Gideon isn't a threat. He's a close friend of mine. He's the one who allowed Piper and I to get married."

"Regardless, we both felt it. There's something about Gideon. If an innocent can feel it-"

"I don't think Christy's an innocent," Leo interrupted. "She saw Phoebe's vision."

"However, it's still significant. We need to check Gideon out before you go to him."

"All right. I'll make sure that he hasn't taken a different turn." He orbed out.

"Phoebe, you could learn a lot from the attitude Leo has," Prue said as she looked at Phoebe from the corner of her eye.

"Can we not get into that?" Piper said.

"Look, Prue, just get it out. Admit it," said Phoebe.

"Admit what?"

"That you hate him! This isn't about him being evil. This is about the fact that you hate him."

"Phoebe-"

"No! I don't want to hear it." She stormed out.

Piper sighed. "I'll go talk to her."

The two estranged sisters were left together. _Maybe they'll make some progress now. _

"What's your view on all this?" Prue asked Paige.

_"What are you doing? You can't put that kind of pressure on her. That's totally unfair," _I protested.

But Paige responded easily. "I don't trust Cole at all. Once a demon, always a demon."

"That's exactly how I feel. He killed in the past. He wanted to kill Phoebe."

"And now she's engaged to him. It doesn't make sense."

"But if he's trying to trick her, then it would make perfect sense."

"That's why I think Phoebe should at least cast a truth spell on him," Paige said. She seemed excited to have someone who agreed with her.

"But she won't hear of it, will she?"

"She won't even discuss it. She thinks that it will devalue their relationship."

"It's a relationship based on random passion," Prue said. "She wants him because she shouldn't have him. It's so Phoebe. She was a rebel in high school, she's a rebel now."

Paige looked surprised. "Phoebe was a rebel in high school?"

"Yeah. She used to hang out with the bad boy crew. She would do anything to piss Grams off."

"That would explain the Cole situation. But other than that, I wouldn't have expected that. Phoebe is pretty responsible in the other areas of her life."

"Well, at least she maintains that. We all changed a lot after Phoebe read that incantation."

"Yeah, I can understand that. When I suddenly got my powers and had to…"

"Replace me?"

"No, I-I never wanted to replace you," Paige said, stuttering slightly. "But all along, I've been trying to live up to you."

"How could you do that when you had never even met me?"

"I've been trying to be superwitch."

"Oh? And how has that been going?"

Paige smiled a little. "Not so good. I had a little trouble with personal gain and consequences."

"I've been there."

They were bonding. This was incredible. I couldn't believe that Paige was talking with Prue so easily. Before, she had been so closed up. Maybe that had been because of Piper and Phoebe. Maybe she felt she could speak more freely now. Whatever it was, it was working wonderfully. I was really hoping that nothing would break up this moment, because that would be a terrible shame.

"So exactly how did you find out?" Prue asked.

"Well, I saw your obituary in the newspaper, and I was drawn to you. I can't explain it."

"You don't have to. It's the bond that sisters share."

"I went to your funeral, and there I met Phoebe. Phoebe had a premonition about Shax coming after me. It was pretty powerful. In the confusion, I left. That night, Shax attacked me and my boyfriend, and somehow I orbed. We went through this whole chase, and I got away. Piper summoned Grams to find out about me, and mom appeared. She told Piper and Phoebe the whole story. I came here, and we vanquished Shax together. I… well, I got freaked out and left."

"Perfectly understandable."

She started to go on, but Leo orbed in.

_"Leo, they're bonding. Shoo, shoo!" _Prue didn't relay the message.

"What's up?"

"The Elders want to see Christina."

_"Again?" _I groaned.

"Where are Phoebe and Piper?" Leo continued.

"Don't ask," Paige said. "Do they just want Christina?"

He nodded. "That's what they say."

"But what about Gideon?" Prue said.

"The other Elders are there. If you really need me, just call."

_"Prue, I don't want to go up there with Gideon. After what I saw…"_

_Don't worry. If anyone tries anything, I can use my telekinesis. _

He orbed us back to the heavens, then left. We were back in the same room. The same Elders were there.

"What do you want?" Prue asked curtly.

"We wish to speak to Christina, Prudence," said Gideon.

She gave him a look and allowed me to come forward. I swallowed hard as I faced them, keeping my eyes trained on Gideon.

"Leo has informed us that you channeled Phoebe's vision."

I shrugged. "I guess."

"Yet you have no relation to a witch."

"Maybe it's just Prue."

"Prue wouldn't gain any new powers within your body."

"Oh… okay."

"You may be a natural born witch. It's very rare, but it does happen. We'd like to see if you do have powers. You must undergo a test."

No way. "Uh, you know, that really doesn't sound good to me. Maybe some other time." I searched for an exit. There was none. My heart pounded in my chest. I was certain that the Elders could hear it. "Or maybe I could stick around and check out this test." I smiled weakly. _Any way to get out of here, Prue?_

_"No. Do you want me to take over?"_

_Not right now. _Gideon waved his hand, and I was in the dark room. I tried to keep my breathing even. Something was going to get me. I felt like I was going to pass out from the fear. My mind was racing, as was my heart. Suddenly, someone grabbed me. I shrieked, whirled around, and fell to the ground. "Leo! Leo!"

"Christina, it's all right. It's me," Leo said.

"You scared the hell out of me." I got up. "Why is it so dark in here?"

"You have to react using your powers, not your senses. I can't believe that Gideon would put you here."

"Believe it. Is it really you?"

"Yes."

"How can I know that? Maybe this is a part of this stupid test."

Leo sighed and orbed. The temporary light showed that it was him.

"Okay, it's really you. What are you doing here? I thought you trusted Gideon."

"I felt you panicking."

"You felt me?"

"Yeah. That's another thing I don't understand. I can only feel my charges."

"Prue's your charge."

"But your emotions are separate."

"You know which one of us is feeling what?"

"Yes."

"Funky. How do we get out of here?"

"You can only get out by using your powers."

"Can't you just orb me?"

"No. You have to use your powers to be released. That's why I'm so surprised that he would do this."

"I'm not a witch or half-whitelighter. Why are the Elders so obsessed with this?"

"It would help if you were a witch."

"But I'm not. I'm never getting out of here. I just wanted to help Prue. Why can't they leave me alone?" Frustration took over. I wanted to get out. I wanted to get at those Elders and yell my lungs out. I had to get out. _I want out. I want out! _

The sensation that came along with orbing came over me. Leo was orbing me, but why? He had told me that he couldn't get me out. I appeared in the Elders' room. "Leo?" I looked to him, but he wasn't there. Moments later, he orbed into the room.

"Christina, you have the ability to orb. Congratulations," Gideon said.


	5. Surprising Results

**A/N: thank you, egastin77 and ProtectionPaige, for reviewing. **

"Good one, Gideon. I didn't know that Elders joked," I said. "But I'd really like to get back to the Manor right now."

"Then orb." He had a superior tone to his voice that I didn't like.

"I can't orb. I'm not half-whitelighter. Why would my mother lie to me?" I flared. His attitude wasn't helping me.

"You seem to be a unique case, Christina. You have powers even though you're not supposed to have them."

"Look, I don't want to have any powers. Just – just take them."

He made a small noise in his throat. "We cannot lift powers from beings who are meant to have them."

"Hey, I'm not going to accept this unless destiny comes and beats it into my head. Got it? Good." I crossed my arms defiantly.

"The Angel of Destiny is currently busy."

"I can't orb," I said adamantly. "And I'll prove it. Watch." I concentrated on orbing… And I orbed. I stood there, mouth open. "Aw, crap." I orbed to the manor. There, in Prue's room, I paced. "This is insane. This is impossible. This is… this is… argh!" I was silent a moment. "Lives are ruined by magic. People die because of magic. I don't want to have powers. I might end up dead, just like you. Then we'd both be up the creek without a paddle."

_"Powers can also help. They will protect you. Magic can save people. You're forgetting that little detail. I know this is overwhelming, but try to calm down and think this through."_

"I'm starting to see why you were so annoyed when I told you to calm down." I most certainly didn't feel like calming down. "But you know what makes it worse? The first power I get is orbing. I mean, sure, it's useful, but you can't attack using orbs. I don't even get a power like Paige's. It's even more annoying. You four get cool powers. What do I get? Orbing. And no one even knows why the hell I have it. It's certainly not because of genetics. It's - it's random! The universe decided to do this to me." I shook my head. I kind of wished that I could rant without Prue listening to me. Knowing that someone else was listening made me want to shut up. But I wanted to rant, so that didn't help at all. Well, at least she wasn't attempting to make me accept it.

I sat down on the bed. "I must be some sort of magical freak. You have to have the genetics to have the powers, right? I mean, this hasn't happened before, has it?"

_"Well, Paige is probably the only other half-whitelighter that we know of. But yes, I would say that you're the only one."_

"Oh, that just makes things better." I stopped, my self-consciousness taking over. "I'm sorry you have to hear my ranting. I know that you're not exactly someone who would choose to deal with teen angst."

_"You're confused. I understand. I didn't believe Phoebe at all when she tried to tell me that I could move things with my mind… despite the fact that aspirin bottles were flying at me."_

I smiled. "But you got a cool power. Telekinesis is awesome. Orbing is so… boring. All whitelighters can do that. Even they get more powers. They can heal and hear those… what do you call them?"

_"Jingles. And you're awfully impatient. The first power is just a start. Powers advance. If you meant to fight demons and the like, you'll get an offensive power eventually."_

"I think you're my offensive power." But Prue's words were calming the storm within me. "Maybe it is kind of cool that I can orb. Now I'll never have to worry about begging mom for the car."

All of a sudden, the few small object in the room rose up into the air. "Prue, are you doing that?" I asked nervously.

_"No…"_

They all rushed toward me. I yelped and fought them off, but they just kept coming at me. I dove under the bed. "What was that?"

_"Probably magic."_

"Do you often get attacked by your stuff?"

_"I think that you did that."_

"I did that?"

_"I guess. I don't think it's telekinesis, though. If it were, then you would have sent that stuff flying." _She took a moment to think._ "I believe there's a power that causes a person to have her own gravitational pull."_

"You think that's what's happening to me? Didn't you just say that this takes time?"

_"You seem to be a very unique case."_

"Great." I stuck my hand out from under the bed experimentally. A few drawers in the dresser opened and a camera jumped into my hand. "Okay. So maybe this is for real. Hmm…" I looked over the camera. "This must be yours."

_"Yeah. I'm surprised that it isn't up in the attic."_

"Didn't you say that taking photos relaxed you?"

_"Yes."_

"I'll keep that in mind." I carefully got out from under the bed. The things flew towards me again. "Stop. Down!" They did as I said. "Okay. Now that was pretty cool." I tucked the camera back into the dresser. "If you get annoyed with Phoebe again, I'll bring that out. Do you think Leo's going to come down?"

_"Definitely."_

Right on cue, Leo orbed into the room. "Christina-"

"Me first," I said and held up my hands. "Watch this." The same attack of things happened, but I had the objects rotate around me. "I'm like the sun or something. Isn't it cool? Hey, I wonder if they'll follow me through an orb." I orbed. The object followed me. "Neat!"

"You have the call."

"The call? I like the sound of that."

"I can't believe this. No one has had the call since the time after Melinda died."

"Did Melinda have this power?"

"No, but her daughter did."

"Interesting, but wouldn't she have her mother's powers?"

"Melinda's promise made it so that new powers would arise within the Warren line. Each Warren woman received a new power because of her."

"Wow. She sounds pretty powerful. Does this mean something?"

"Probably."

Dread arose within me. "Don't tell me that I have to go back to the Elders."

"I don't think we should deal with the Elders right now." His eyes were dark with concern. "They're rushing to get a quick fix. We're just going to deal with the Book."

"Okay." I orbed up to the attic. Though I had moments ago been ranting about this ability, I was starting to like this. It was my usual fashion: I got all dramatic, then accepted whatever it was that was bugging me. It was just who I was.

"Christy?" Piper said. "You can orb?" Leo appeared beside her. She looked to him.

"Yeah. I can also do this." I used the call again. "Pretty cool, huh?"

They were understandably bewildered.

"I appear to be a freak of magical nature. But it's who I am, and I don't think I can fight it."

"You really jumped to the acceptance stage quickly," Phoebe said.

"I've seen what you guys can do," I said with a shrug. "It seems pretty cool."

"Leo?" Piper asked.

"It's the call. Melinda Warren's daughter had that power later in her life. It's in the Book."

Phoebe flipped through the Book. "Ah, the call. It allows a person to draw things to herself. It's both physical and spiritual. The person may also call upon spirits without the aid of a spell. Spirits are often drawn to people blessed with this ability. It is very rare and very powerful. It exists only within the Warren line." She looked up. "Well, that's what they thought."

"Is this why Prue ended up in Christina's body?" Paige questioned.

"It's why Prue was drawn to her," Leo said. "It doesn't explain why she got into her body, though."

"So we don't need a spell to find out who did this. The reason why, though, is still another mystery of magic," Phoebe concluded.

"For now, that is," Paige added.

_You two seem to have a lot in common,_ I remarked to Prue.

_"In what ways?"_

_You both hate Cole, you both try to be superwitch, and you both seem to be significantly ambitious._

_"I guess it's a family trait."_

"What happened up there, anyway?" Phoebe asked.

"Gideon placed her in the test room," Leo filled them in. "It's a place where people are supposed to react using their powers."

"That explains the darkness I saw. What was the scream about?"

"I surprised her."

"Oh." Phoebe frowned. "How did she get out?"

"She orbed out. Now the Elders know about that ability." He turned to me. "How did you discover the call?"

"I was in Prue's room and everything attacked me. It was like I was a human magnet."

Leo studied me carefully, making me feel like a specimen under a microscope. "That's incredible. No one has ever gained powers so quickly."

"Well, I think I had the call before. I was able to call Prue to me, even though I didn't know what I was doing." That was awfully odd. How could I use my power unwittingly? Had something triggered it? I had never dealt with ghosts before. Why now all of a sudden? I mentally went through everything that I had done two days ago. I hadn't done anything out of the ordinary. Prue had told me about how powers could be triggered by emotions, but I hadn't felt any strong emotions that day. It really was a random occurrence.

"Are there any spells in the Book to restore a body?" Piper asked hopefully.

"It's not looking like there are any," Phoebe said with a frown. "There's probably a reason for that." She caught Leo's eye.

"If you keep a person's body alive, their soul will be called to it. It's like raising the dead, and that is definitely not allowed."

"But could we write a spell?" Piper said.

"No."

"Can't we just try? You never know…"

"The Elders are the ones that allow magic to take place. They can't break the rules, not even for Prue."

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "Well, that's just great."

"It's how it is."

Phoebe looked kind of tired, and distracted. I could see that she was worried about something. Maybe it was because of the fight with Prue. Something told me that that wasn't quite it, though.

_Something's going on with Phoebe._

_"Something is always going on with Phoebe,"_ Prue said gruffly.

_She looks really worried though._

_"If she has something that she wants to say, she'll say it."_

_She might not want to. You did chew her out pretty hard._

_"Concentrate on the task at hand."_

"Can we transfer her soul into another body?" Piper wondered.

"No. The moment of separation is too exact. You wouldn't be able to do a ritual within the time that the soul severed its bond to its body."

"Do we have to run into these obstacles all the time?" Paige said in frustration.

"You were meant to overcome this. Prue isn't supposed to be alive, but she is. That means that you can find a way."

_"Isn't he a great whitelighter? He always makes us so confident."_

_Yeah, he's a pretty cool guy, _I thought._ I wasn't sure about him when I saw Piper's destiny… Where did that come from?_

_"I don't know. That was strange."_

_Well, everything today is weird. Why not my thoughts too? _I still couldn't push away the puzzlement over that thought, though. It had come to me out of nowhere. Why had it flowed so easily into my mind? Why did it seem right? I shook my head but did not succeed in shaking away the ponderings.

"We're just going to have to look in other sources," Leo said. "Magic School would be the best place to go. Gideon has a collection of books."

"Magic School?" Phoebe asked.

"Yeah. It's the one that Gideon runs. I know that you and Paige have to get to work tomorrow, so Piper, I'll take you and Prue to Magic School to do some research." He eyed Phoebe. "You don't look too good."

"Oh, I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Any particular reason?"

"No. I just… was worried about this whole situation." She smiled weakly. Leo didn't push it.

"So once again, there's nothing we can do right now?" Piper said.

"For now."

I wouldn't have been surprised if Prue had been frustrated. Angry, even. But she felt neither. How could she be so calm when it came to magic, yet so easily annoyed when it came to Phoebe? I decided to ask her. _You're so calm with magic. Why doesn't that transfer to Phoebe?_

_"I can't do anything about magic. I can do something about Phoebe."_

_I see._

This adventure wasn't going to slow down any time soon. Whenever one mystery got solved, another question would pop up. Prue complicated her life more than she needed to. I would have to work on that with her. She wasn't going to like me nagging at her, but it had to be done. I wanted to help her, and not just with her pressing dilemma. She had emotional troubles, and I was going to have her face them… eventually. I had to work up the courage to get ready for possible fury. I wasn't quite ready yet.

* * *

I was sleeping peacefully, my mind blissfully blank. I didn't hear the conversation that was going on in the next room. Prue, however, was listening intently. She took control of my body and got up. I wouldn't have minded if it hadn't been for the fact that she woke me up in the process. It seemed that whoever was in the back didn't get to be asleep.

_"Prue, what are you doing up?"_ I was groggy. It was the middle of the night, and I was not at my best.

"Just go back to sleep," she whispered.

_"I can't. You're in control. What is it?"_

"Phoebe's talking with Piper and Paige. I'd like to know what they're talking about."

_"So… you're going to eavesdrop."_

"It's not eavesdropping. I deserve to know."

_"Hey, you don't have to convince me of anything. I think that you deserve to know too."_

Prue became silent as she approached Phoebe's door. She pressed her ear against the door and listened carefully.

"Phoebe," Piper was saying, "you have to tell Prue sometime. It's not like you can keep it hidden forever."

"I know," Phoebe sighed. "But I know that she's going to freak out."

"I think she'll have a worse reaction if she notices it first. She'll want to know about this," Paige told her.

"Of course she will, but she'll be so angry with me. She'll go against Cole even more. She definitely won't be proud of it."

"She won't be happy, but she'll eventually accept it. There's nothing that she can do to change it," Piper said reassuringly.

"But just her rejection… I've missed her so much, but we can't seem to stop fighting. This will make it even worse. If I tell her, she'll pull away from me." There was a pause. "If I tell her, she'll be disappointed in me. But I should be used to that," Phoebe said miserably.

"That is not true. You've done so much. You've helped tons of innocents, you've got a great job, and you're a wonderful sister. She won't be disappointed. Angry, yes, but she'll get over it. You know she will," Piper said.

"I guess."

"You guess?" Paige said. "Phoebe, I've only known you for a little while, but I've seen how good you are. You made me feel welcome when I felt out of place. You've gotten through so much before; you can do it again. Prue is our sister. We'll face her with you. We won't leave your side."

"Paige is absolutely right. We're your support system. We'll be there when you tell Prue. You won't be alone."

_What are they talking about?_ I was confused, but Prue seemed sure that they were going to reveal it any moment.

"So you just relax. We'll do this whenever you want to. Have you told Cole?"

"No. I'm sorry for waking you two."

"You were crying. We had to come to you," Paige said. "Don't worry about anything."

"I just feel so alone. Cole didn't want to stay because he knows how much he upsets Prue. He didn't want to cause more trouble between us."

"He's really sweet," Piper commented.

"He's human now," Phoebe responded. "Now things are easier. Well, before Prue found out. Paige, I know that you don't like him, and I know that you don't believe that he's good-"

"I don't have any proof. I'm starting to rethink my attitude. He hasn't done anything to make it seem like he's evil again. You love him, and he's going to be my brother-in-law. I'm going to give him a second chance."

"Really?"

"Yes. When do you want to tell Prue?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"That soon?"

"I want to get this out in the open. I can't keep facing her while I have this in the back of my mind."

"Okay. Now get some sleep. You need it."

Prue sensed that they were going to come out of Phoebe's room and hauled herself back to her room. A few seconds later, Paige and Piper came out of the room.

"Good night, sweetie."

"Good night. Thank you."

"It's what sisters are for."

_"What was that?"_

"I don't know," Prue murmured. "But apparently I'm going to find out tomorrow."

_"Just promise that you won't go ballistic on her. She's obviously very troubled. She needs your help. Be a sister to her without judging her."_

"I can't promise anything."

_"Prue, she was crying over this. She's upset. She needs you with her, not against her."_

"That all depends on what she has to tell me."

I sighed. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

_"Eager?"_ I asked. Prue had taken over right when I had gotten up. She was rushing through my morning routine. I didn't need to look at her emotions to know that she wanted to talk to Phoebe.

"Can you blame me?" she said pointedly.

I couldn't. I was just as curious about the situation. I wanted to know what Phoebe was hiding from Prue.

"I can't remember it taking so long to get ready when I was alive."

_"You've been dead for a while. I guess you forgot. Plus there's the fact that you can't wait to get down there."_

She put the brush down. "There. Done."

_"Congratulations. You brushed your hair."_

She chose to ignore me and quickly got down to the kitchen. Everyone was there again. "Morning," she said. "It's Prue."

_"Subtle."_

_They don't know that I know._

"Hi, Prue," Piper said. She was making breakfast, as usual.

"So… what's going on today?"

_"Hint, hint."_

"Well, I have to go to work," Paige said.

"And we're going to Magic School," Piper added.

Phoebe's turn. "I have to take care of my column."

"Your column?" Prue asked.

"I have a job at a newspaper. I'm Ask Phoebe. I got the job while we were saving an innocent."

"The one time magic gives something good, and I miss it." Was this forced cheerful, or was she channeling her eagerness? Maybe it was both.

"Yeah… Um, Prue…" Phoebe looked down at the table and fiddled with the silverware. She was biting her lip also.

"Yes?" She perked up.

"It's pretty hard to say this, but you need to know." She looked up, but she still didn't look into Prue's eyes.

"We support Phoebe completely on this issue," Piper said and put her hand on Phoebe's shoulder. Paige stood on the other side of Phoebe.

"Okay. What is it?"

Phoebe took a deep breath. "Prue," now she looked into Prue's eyes. "I… I'm… pregnant."

Prue blinked. "Pregnant?" she repeated slowly.

She nodded.

"By Cole?"

She again nodded.

"When he was a demon?"

"No. The baby won't be part demon."

Prue took this in. The numbness of shock was starting to wear off. She was coming to the realization that Phoebe truly was pregnant with Cole's child. This was real. It wasn't a dream. If she couldn't even stand the idea of them getting married, she certainly wouldn't accept this.

_God, don't let her freak out. Please, just let her support her._ I knew that she wasn't going to do it. She was going to go down on Phoebe.

Piper, Paige, and Phoebe were tense. They all knew that Prue wasn't going to react well.

She finally found the ability to form a sentence. She stood up, then went over to Phoebe. She pulled her up. Piper and Paige stayed close, ready to stop her if she did something. She then did something I never would have expected, leaving me in awe. I felt the same amount of shock that Prue had felt moments before.

She hugged Phoebe. She pulled her up and hugged her. "That's wonderful, Phoebe!" she squealed. She stooped down and kissed Phoebe's stomach. Phoebe looked down at Prue in astonishment as she joyfully hugged Phoebe once more. Paige and Piper exchanged a look.

"Prue, you do realize that she said Cole, right?" Paige said.

"A human Cole. That's all that matters."

Whoa. That was all I could say. Whoa.


	6. Right Way, Wrong Way

**A/N: whoa. Is that really today's date? I know this has taken far longer than usual, but I just moved into a new house (a real pain in the arse!). I hope this makes up for the lost time. Thank you, Charmed-snow (you'll just have to read to find out), ProtectionPaige, and FuryPiper, for reviewing. This story's finally back!**

"So this is Magic School. Pretty impressive, I must say." I peered down the endless hallway. "What's the point of having an endless hallway, anyways? Do these people really need all that space?" I wasn't really talking to anyone in particular, though Piper and Leo smiled at my comments.

"It's a good thing you and Prue are compatible," Piper remarked. "Otherwise she would have driven you crazy. Or the other way around."

"I like her attitude."

"This is it," Leo said as we reached our destination. We were confronted by a wall of books.

My mouth dropped open. "Wow. There are a lot of books there. How are we going to find the right one?" I questioned.

"I was hoping that you could use your power," Leo replied.

"Can I call specific things?"

"Yes, you can. Try it."

"Okay. Um, books that relate to Prue's situation." I raised my hands. Many books came flying at me. "Stop! Now just settle down on the table." They calmly went to the table and formed a neat pile. "Good. This is one crazy power."

"You'll get used to it eventually," Leo said. I liked the way that he spoke. He had a smooth, even tone that could bring peace to your spirit. The things that he said helped, too - he had a way with words that was quite unique. It didn't seem like an ability that every whitelighter had. It was just Leo.

"Hmm. There are an awful lot of books there." I eyed the tall pile. This was going to take a while, and I wasn't sure how long we had before Gideon returned. "Are you sure that we're going to get through all this before Gideon comes back?" The Elders were debating over Prue's situation. I had no idea exactly why it was a debate instead of a discussion; the happenings in the heavens were very secret. Thinking back to the first demon I had seen, I could understand that. It still irked me a little, though.

"This is a very complicated situation. They may have some solutions, but there's a lot of controversy involved with every answer," Leo replied. Piper was silently sorting through the books with a noticeable gleam in her eyes. She wanted to help her sister, but she more wanted her sister back in her original form. If only the right book would pop up, if only I could make everything right for them…

But in order to do that, I had to deal with tedious details, including sorting the books. _Well, this is a magic school. These books are bound to be interesting. _I had to keep myself positive about the situation, and I had to focus on how I would be able to help Prue. "Let's get started then." I joined Piper and picked out the first book that I saw. It was huge, at least a thousand pages long. On the cover, _Exploration of the Spirit_ was written in silvery letters. I forced myself to not groan as I sat down and opened the book. _I think this book is cutting off the blood to my legs, _I said to Prue.

_"You're such a drama queen."_

_I know. But this thing is humongous. It'd take me a year to read all of it._

_"But you're not going to read all of it. You just need to look for the important things."_

_How can I know what's important?_

_"Look for things concerning separation of the spirit from the body."_

_Maybe this thing has an index… _I flipped to the back with significant difficulty. There was no index. _Just great. _Opting to not go through every page, I concentrated on looking for a chapter that would help me. To my surprise, the chapter that I opened up to was perfect. _Death and the soul's journey. Now that's talent. _I started to read the first paragraph. It took up the whole page. I skipped to the next page. _The soul separates instantly… blah, blah… the soul begins a journey to heaven… Well, what if it doesn't? _

The next few pages were devoted to a description of the pathway to heaven. Once it had described it enough to make my head spin, it went into the details of the ghostly realm. _The ghostly realm eases the transition. Does that sound like where you went?_

_"No. There was nothing there, and it certainly didn't ease anything."_

That was enough for me to skip over that part. _The worldly gap, eh? _This passage seemed to be more intriguing than the others. _The worldly gap is a place between the real world and the ghostly realm. It is completely devoid of all the characteristics that bring comfort to the soul. No spirit has ever been sent here, but if one were to do so, the person would be aware of only emptiness. Such a durance would be triggered only by premature death, and that is not a part of destiny's threads. The spirit, in theory, would be sent back to Earth and drawn to someone who could bring the person back. _

_"That's definitely where I was," _Prue confirmed.

"Prue was sent to the worldly gap," I announced. Piper and Leo looked up at me. Leo seemed to know what I was talking about, but he looked dubious.

"The worldly gap?" Leo frowned. "That puts a whole new spin on this situation."

"How so?" Piper asked.

"It means that Prue wasn't meant to die. Something forced her to die. This whole thing is a part of her destiny."

"But the book said that premature death is never a part of destiny," I pointed out. Though the book had also said that souls never went to the worldly gap…

"The Charmed Ones are unique in every aspect." He turned to Piper, who was obviously searching for a deeper explanation. "You four must have a very complicated destiny that goes beyond the normal outlines."

"This is really annoying. How are we supposed to make any progress if there are no rules to guide us?" I could clearly see that Piper liked magic the least of the four sisters. She was a structured person, and magic seemed to screw up that structure for her. "I suppose that we're destined to figure this all out, though," she said, answering her own question. I liked that Halliwell attitude that the sisters showed off.

"It might have to do with what happened afterward," Leo said. "If Prue hadn't died, you wouldn't have met Paige."

"But we met Paige because of the Power of Three. It was the gap in powers that led us to find her," Piper argued. "Mom only told us the truth because she had to."

"Then perhaps it has to do with Christy. Or maybe both of them."

"Hey, I'm not that special," I said uncomfortably.

"Yes, you are. You have powers that you're not supposed to have. You have a Halliwell power. Prue was drawn to you for a reason. We just have to figure out why all this had to happen."

"Oh, all right." I set aside the book and called for another one. Two books came to me, fighting each other. I looked from the books to Leo and Piper, who didn't notice the struggle. Neither book won out and they both came to me. _Melinda Warren and the Halliwell Line_ was the title of the first book. _Death and Life_ was the title of the second one. "Interesting," I murmured and opened the book about Melinda Warren. It turned out to be quite fascinating. I was completely caught up in it when I felt a strange sensation. It felt like someone was watching me. I looked up, but Leo and Piper were both involved in their books. I looked back down, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched.

The feeling didn't go away. In fact, it got stronger the more I ignored it. Finally I couldn't resist and looked up again. A woman was standing by the doorway, her eyes fixed on me. I stared at her, mesmerized. She seemed to exude serenity, so I felt no threat from her. I didn't understand what was happening, but for once, I didn't really care.

The thought of going over to her skipped across my mind, but that didn't seem necessary. There was something about her that stopped me from doing anything. If I just stayed where I was, something important would happen.

Just as I was acknowledging that fact, the room began to shift into a new surrounding. I was in a cave. Fear jumped up in me, for I knew that my end was nearing. _Premonitions are never wrong, after all. _It was like Prue was in control, but that wasn't what was happening. She didn't control my thoughts. This was something else…

Suddenly, I was grabbed. I didn't know where I was, but I knew what was happening. I tried to free my hands, but I was being tied to a stake. I was helpless. My powers could do me no good.

"Burn the witch! Burn the witch!"

That horrible chanting drilled itself into my head. How dare they do this to me! I protected them from evil. I was their savior, and they were persecuting me! Flames crackled around me, licking at my body. I squeezed my eyes shut and shouted my final words. "You may burn my flesh, but my power does not end here!" My mouth continued to move, but I could no longer feel myself. I was being pulled away from that place, that memory. It was only a memory…

Images began to fill the void in my eyes. A room… books… two people… Who was I? Where was I? I couldn't even tell if I had a body. Was I solid? Was I real? I didn't know, and it scared me terribly. I needed something, anything to cling to. I needed to know who I was and if I truly was being burned. I felt safe, but I didn't know for certain that I was. Please, please… what was this?

_"Christy? Christy, enough spacing out. Come back to Earth."_

Christy. No, that couldn't be who I was. Christy… Christy… Full awareness hit me heavily. I felt very light-headed and tired out, but I at least knew that I _was _Christy. Why had I been unsure of that? What had I just seen? And – the woman! I searched for her in the room, but she was gone. Puzzled, I tried to piece together what I had just endured. Fire… there had definitely been a fire. And a witch. They had been calling me a witch. I was a witch, but I wasn't being burned. What on earth had just happened to me?

_Prue, what the heck was that? _

_"What was what?"_

_That vision, _I said impatiently. _That was so real. I don't think that was just a daydream. My mind isn't nearly that morbid. _

_"I didn't see anything. Tell me what you saw. It may be important."_

_I saw from the eyes of this witch. She was being taken away to be burned at the stake. She had had a premonition of it, and she apparently needed her hands to work her other powers. As she was being burned, she said that her power wouldn't end with her. _

_"I think," _Prue said slowly, _"that you summoned the memory of Melinda Warren's burning. You need to tell Leo."_

_No, not yet. I want to finish up here. It was probably just triggered by the fact that I was reading about her. _My hands were shaking a little. Even though that hadn't really happened to me, it felt like it had. It had been so real. I didn't want to talk about it again. I just wanted to forget it.

I raised my hand to call another book, forgetting that I already had another book to read through. As the next book came to me, I glanced at my hand. I almost gasped at the sight that confronted me. I stared, not believing what I was seeing.

My fingertips were an angry red. They had been burned. The bracelet that I was wearing had been melted together so that the charms weren't distinguishable. It was like I had actually been touched by fire, though it was centralized around my hands. Now it was time to tell Leo.

But as I watched, the redness began to disappear. It was like I was healing at warp speed. _Okay, now this is getting really weird. _I inspected my hands closely. They were completely healed. Had I just imagined that they had been burned? The glaring melted metal that was wrapped around my wrist proved that something had happened. Tenderly, I pressed my hands together. No pain resulted. I shook my head. _I must be going crazy or something. _

_"Tell Leo,"_ Prue insisted.

_No. There has to be a logical explanation. I had a weird daydream, which led to me thinking that my hands were burned._

_"How do you explain the bracelet?"_

_Maybe… Maybe my power reacted to what I saw and… melted the bracelet. _

_"That makes no sense whatsoever. You don't have a power that could do that. You didn't call anything. This is something else."_

_Maybe I have untapped potential. I'm just starting to explore my powers. Plus I did call Phoebe's premonition. _I hadn't yet explored that detail. _How could I call a vision to me? It's not like this power allows me to channel other people's powers. I don't think that the call relates to why I saw Phoebe's vision. Maybe this vision relates to it somehow. _

_"Could you possibly focus? You just saw something that you can't explain. Find a way to explain it."_

Out of nowhere, a soft voice whispered into my ear. "The book is the key," a woman's voice said.

I didn't even blink. _That's it! Enough with the mysterious voices. I already have a resident voice, thank you very much! I'll assume that you didn't hear that, Prue._

_"Actually, I did."_

_Oh. Well, what book is this voice talking about?_

_"I would guess that it's the one in your lap."_

I looked down at the book. The title read _The Art of Alchemy_ in loopy gold writing. Alchemy seemed like a familiar term, but I couldn't quite recall from where I remembered it. Hoping to stir some memory of it, I opened the book.

_"What are you doing?" _Prue asked in an agitated tone.

_Reading. _

_"I'm aware of that. Why aren't you speaking up?"_

_Who am I to disobey a mysterious voice?_

She started to argue, but I quieted her voice by reading the beginning of the book. _Alchemy is the complicated method of producing a chemical substance that can turn any metal into gold and is the elixir of life. The beginnings of this practice are unclear and widely debated, but most people agree that the one who began alchemy was Hermes Trismegistus. Trismegistus was an Egyptian who wrote the _Emerald Tablet_, the first guide to alchemy. With him, we begin a journey that explores the art of alchemy. _

This book did seem appropriate, for some strange reason. Perhaps it was because of the fact that alchemy dealt with the elixir of life, which could possibly help Prue. But Prue had a sense of life. She wasn't really dead, so how could the elixir of life help her? What she truly needed was a body. She needed to get back her true life and let go of this half-life.

Yet I found myself continuing on. _Alchemy is one of the few magical outlets that innocents have taken part in. Some witches and dark beings dabbled in the practice, but it did not become a serious subject until Hermes Trismegistus took up the practice. A powerful wizard, he was able to correct many of the mistakes that had passed down by the ones who had come before him. Trismegistus came close to finding the correct potion for alchemy, but the Council of Elders stopped him before he could overstep the boundaries placed on magic. He was forced to give up, but others continued his work. _

_The reasons why Trismegistus's work was brought to end are numerous, but the primary reason would be personal gain. Trismegistus had intended to give himself immortality, which completely violated the natural rules of good magic. In addition to that, there is the fact that demons could have easily accessed the power of immortality. Success in alchemy also would have affected innocents deeply.  
_

The book turned out to be a fascinating read. It seemed that even Prue got caught up in the twists and turns that could be found throughout the history of alchemy. Even though I couldn't see how this would relate to Prue's problem, I thoroughly enjoyed the subject of alchemy. I found myself wishing that alchemy did have something to do with what was happening. _Maybe we can find a way to link this to the situation. _

_"In order to do that," _Prue responded, _"we'll have to get everything out into the open, including your little vision."_

_You're not going to let go of this, are you?_

_"No. I know how things can spiral out of control when you withhold information. Magic has an incredible impact on all aspects of life. It's better to deal with things while you still have some kind of control over the situation."_

_I find it hard to imagine that you could let anything get out of control._

_"It happens to everyone at some point. No one is perfect."_

_You should have been made into whitelighter._

_"No way. I never would have followed the rules."_

_You not following the rules? That's quite a shock. It's a good thing I was sitting down. _

_"I wish I had lived a little more," _she said wistfully. _"Loved, even. But it seems like Andy…" _She stopped abruptly. I could feel her sorrow over her lost love. _"Time should heal all wounds. But I know that it doesn't."_

I didn't quite know how to respond to that, so I stayed quiet.

"Find anything important?" Leo asked suddenly.

I jumped. I had forgotten all about Piper and Leo. "Not really. I've been looking at alchemy. It relates to the elixir of life, but I don't think that would help Prue much. Plus there's the fact that the Elders get annoyed if anyone toys with alchemy. But Hermes Trismegistus seemed to know what he was getting into, and he knew what he was doing. If we could summon him here, then-"

"Don't say that," Leo said urgently.

"Why?"

"Because it brings me right to you, young lady. Have you no idea what your powers can do?" A tall, thin man dressed in a flowing black robe was standing in front of me, studying me distastefully. "There used to be a time when young people had to be properly tutored before they could use their powers. What ever happened to that?"

"Who the heck are you?"

"Primarily, I am known as Melchior. But you're probably looking for one of my past lives." He picked up the book in my lap and looked it over. "I was at one time Hermes Trismegistus. I am one of the souls damned by alchemy." He thrust the book back into my arms. "Now, would you kindly explain why you have summoned me?" He looked at me sharply, making it obvious that he didn't want to be here.

I looked from him to Leo. "Oops."


	7. Problem Not Quite Solved

**A/N: oy. It has been a while, I know. But here's the seventh chapter. Thank you, furypiper (read and all shall be revealed), ProtectionPaige, and Dezi (I tend to hold out on things until the big finale. Only around seven more chapters until that, though…) for reviewing the last chapter.**

"So you had a vision and you didn't tell us immediately?" Piper said. I hated that tone. It was the tone that Prue had used with me. It made me feel so… inferior. More than that, it made me feel like I really had screwed up. That was something that I didn't particularly wish to acknowledge. Why, _why _did Piper have to have that tone? Now I felt like a child with her hand in the cookie jar. It made it much harder for me to find an appropriate response.

"Well… yeah," I said meekly. Piper's look told me that that wasn't enough of an explanation. Though I didn't want to, I went on. "It just seems like every time I mention an odd occurrence, things get even weirder. I thought it would be easier to ignore this. Plus that was a creepy vision. Being burned alive, then finding my bracelet like this…" She was giving me a look that my mother often gave me. "But it seems like ignoring this doesn't really help, as you are demonstrating now. You know, you'd make a good mother. You've really got that whole 'I know that you know that I'm annoyed' look down."

I sneaked another glance at Hermes - or Melchior, as he seemed to prefer. He looked Middle Eastern, which made me wonder about his life as Melchior. But his coinciding knowledge of his past life was even more intriguing. How was it that he was able to remember? I couldn't question him on that at that moment, though, for Leo was speaking with him. I didn't know what about, but it was clear that Melchior was not very pleased with his current situation, and he seemed even more displeased with me. I didn't like the impression that he gave, but I wanted to know more about him no matter what. I had called him after all. There was no reason why I shouldn't be able to question him… right?

_"I wonder why he's able to remember his past lives," _Prue said.

_I was just wondering that myself. Perhaps it has to do with his dealings with the Elders, _I said.

_"Perhaps."_

"Well, you should really tell us these things when you see them," Piper said, looking like she was a little uncomfortable with the mention of motherhood. I made a quick mental note to not bring up that subject again. "Ignoring something that is obviously magical can only make things worse. Trust me. I've learned from experience." She paused and switched gears. "We'll have to figure out who the witch was in your vision. It could be the key to this whole thing."

"Just one more thing to add to the long list of things that we need to figure out, right?" I responded with a sigh. "Your life, with all this magic, seems so overwhelming. How can you manage with all this stuff?" That had been bothering me ever since I had arrived. Their life was so stressful, yet they managed to overcome difficulties and live semi-normal lives. They were quite amazing.

"You get used to it after a while," Piper said and shrugged. "We just take it one incident at a time, and we try to keep part of our lives devoted to being normal." She cast a glance at Melchior and Leo.

"I can't believe that I can summon people just by speaking their name," I said. "It looks like I'm going to have to be considerably more careful when I speak." That would not be an easy task for me. When I felt impassioned by a subject, I had a tendency to blurt out whatever I was thinking.

_"Don't worry about that," _Prue said, _"I'll make sure that you don't say anything that you don't mean."_

_Am I supposed to be reassured?_

_"Depends on how you take it."_

_Yeah, that really doesn't help, you know, _I said. _Oh my God, what if the Elders what to get involved with this? We're in an Elder's school. He could easily get to me!_

_"Calm down," _Prue said, being the voice of reason. _"I'd worry more about getting Melchior back to where he belongs."_

_Right. One thing at a time. I mean, Leo can just orb him back to wherever he came from. It'll be easy. _

Melchior looked at me and nodded at Leo. That made me quite uncomfortable. Melchior was smiling a little and looking downright devious. Okay, it was time for him to get orbed back. I had Gideon scheming against me. One person doing that was more than enough for me. To my added horror, Leo also looked to me, then looked back to Melchior and nodded.

_What the heck was that about? _I said, not really directing the question at Prue.

_"We're about to find out."_

"Christina," Leo began as he turned to me, "Melchior has decided to do something that would be greatly helpful to everyone in this situation."

I shifted my eyes from Leo to Melchior. "Okay… What is it?"

"Melchior wishes to help you explore your powers," Leo said. "He is an expert in unusual magic, as you know, and he is an excellent teacher."

I examined his words. It would be greatly helpful if Melchior taught me? My cheeks reddened a little as I understood. I was causing everyone more trouble than I was worth. "Oh, yeah… That would be good. But wouldn't that be interrupting your life, Melchior?"

"What life?" Melchior scoffed. "The Elders will not allow me to truly live."

"So you have nothing better to do than teach a teen witch?" I said, eyebrow raised.

"You are a very eloquent youth," Melchior commented dryly. "But something must be done about your magic. In all my lives, I have never seen anyone with such volatile power. You are a very unique case."

"Is that a compliment?" The words slipped out, and I immediately regretted them. Too late I bit my tongue. This was a respectable man, a true symbol of great magic, and I was acting like a child. _I am really not good at holding my tongue._

_"Tell me about it," _Prue said.

Melchior glared at me. "I'm just making that clear," he said gruffly. "I see that you and I are going to have a lot of fun together."

I looked down guiltily. "Sorry. I kind of have a big mouth…" I cleared my throat. "It would be an honor to be taught by you. But do you mind if I clear up some things first?"

"Such as what?" Melchior responded.

"Why do you know about your past lives? What did the Elders do to you?" I asked in a rush.

Melchior sighed. "I know of my past lives because that is a part of the punishment that the Elders decided I had to endure. You see, in each life following the one as Hermes Trismesgistus, I would always be drawn to alchemy. The Elders made it so that every time I came close to discovering the elixir of life, I would remember my past lives. I would then have to start over with a new life. I was just about to move on from my life as Melchior when you summoned me. I daresay that you have freed me, Christina."

That didn't make me feel any better. It made me feel much worse. "The Elders are going to come after me for sure," I groaned. "I've already been causing enough trouble. Now I've freed you. They are going to be so pissed."

"I wouldn't worry about the Elders," Melchior said. "Now that I am free from them, I am able to use my magic to shield myself. They won't be able to find me."

"Uh, you do know that you're in an Elder's school, right?" I said.

He looked unbothered by this. "Of course," Melchior replied easily.

"Well, don't you think it would be kind of easy for him to spot you?" I continued.

"Absolutely not," Melchior said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Only those who truly have eyes to see can see me now."

"Okay…"

_"Bite your tongue,"_ Prue reminded me.

_I am… I am…_

"So…" I started, looking down at my bracelet. "What are we going to do now?" I touched the melted metal thoughtfully. The vision kept playing over and over in my mind. I had no idea what we were going to deal with first: my vision, Melchior, or any of the other things that I had gotten us into.

"I have to gather my tools, of course. The first thing that I have to do is study your powers," Melchior said and came up to me.

I stared at him.

He looked down at me impatiently. "Well, orb us," Melchior snapped.

"Oh, right…" I wasn't exactly sure if I needed to know where I was going to actually end up there, but somehow we ended up in a strange lab. It was lit by a few flickering lights. Glancing around, I could see that we were underground. "Where are we?"

"It doesn't matter." Melchior waved his hand. All the instruments and things that had occupied the room suddenly vanished. A large black bag appeared in Melchior's hand. "I'm finally beating them," he muttered with a satisfied smirk. He then noticed me staring at him. I realized that I had been doing that a lot, so I wasn't surprised when he scowled at me.

"Yes, yes," I sighed. "Back we go."

_"You're not even trying," _Prue said disapprovingly.

_Believe me, Prue, I'm trying, _I told her as I orbed. It didn't seem right that a man who had just been freed from damnation could be so… unpleasant. I would have thought that he'd be happy. Although, there was the fact that he now had to deal with me. I knew that there were certain people who automatically didn't get along. Cole and Prue were prime examples. Perhaps Melchior and I just wouldn't get along.

That was not making this any easier. Quite frankly, I currently felt screaming my lungs out and throwing a right little temper tantrum. Between Melchior, my vision, and the general feeling that I was a burden, I was really not feeling too friendly. Okay… I just had to take a deep breath. I had to remain calm and adult. _This sucks, _I thought grumpily.

Suddenly I registered that I was back at the school. I was just standing there with everyone looking at me. I had been zoning out again. "Erm… Well, I suppose we should get started on this."

"You finally understand," Melchior said, purposely being condescending. "Now, we should return to the Halliwell manor. My alchemy magic is too strong for the Elders to not sense while I'm here."

I blinked. Yes, I did understand. _What a trick that was! _I exclaimed in my head. _I get it now. He's testing me. _

_"Hmm. You're right. But why?"_

_I have a feeling that it has to do with my magic. _

There was a large amount of orbing and we ended up back at the manor.

"Ah, you're finally back," a strangely familiar voice announced. "I've been waiting for you."

Piper flicked her fingers and I turned around to find none other than Gideon standing in the living, thankfully frozen. My mouth hung open as I stared at him.

"Him? What is he doing here?" I cried, backing up. "He saw Melchior! He-"

"He saw nothing," Melchior assured me.

"Are… are you sure?" I asked unsteadily. I was really getting sick of being surprised. I couldn't handle much more of this.

"I'm certain," Melchior said. It was strange how he could so quickly change his manner of dealing with me. "Go ahead and unfreeze him," he told Piper. She reluctantly did so.

"Hello, Gideon," Piper said uncomfortably. "Um… What are you doing in my home?"

"I need to borrow Christina again," Gideon said, smiling at me.

_Okay, he is officially creeping me out. _He was talking like I wasn't there, despite the fact that he was staring right at me. And that word choice made me feel like an object. _I don't like the look of this. _

Gideon's eyes skimmed over Leo and Piper, then landed right on Melchior. I held my breath as he stared intently, then slowly moved on. I quietly let out the breath. Gideon didn't know that Melchior was there - Melchior's magic really was that strong. This was definitely going to be useful.

_"I don't like this either," _Prue said. There was a frown in her voice.

_What are we going to do? _

She answered that by taking over. "You know, you could directly address Christina," Prue said to Gideon, smiling in a way that I was sure made me look a lot like Prue. "And I don't exactly like it when I come home to find uninvited guests. We were at the school. You could have easily talked to us there."

"You were at the school?" Gideon asked, looking genuinely puzzled. "I wasn't able to sense you anywhere."

Prue quickly glanced at Melchior, who shrugged, smirking. Quickly she turned her attention back on Gideon.

"I see. Christina had a small mishap with her power. That may have interfered," Prue stated. "What exactly do you want from her?"

"We have been debating this issue, and we have come up with an option that will fix everything," Gideon explained. "We would like to discuss it with you."

"You can just tell us now," Prue said, crossing her arms. "I think Piper and Leo should know this."

"They are welcome to come," Gideon said. "But we must go now."

"Fine," Prue said. Once again, we were being orbed off to another place.

I let the feeling of dread wash over me as we appeared in front of the council of Elders. They were all there again, all looking stiff and overly serious. If there was any good news to be told, they certainly didn't look like the ones who would be telling it. My body reacted to this realization in the usual manner, and I felt Prue tense.

_"They do not look like they're going to be delivering fabulous news," _I said nervously. _"I'm not liking this."_

Prue didn't answer; she simply stood there tensely waiting for the Elders to speak. She had no words of comfort for me, and no one in the one could offer me any sense of comfort. Their faces were all somber and stern. Why did the Elders always have to make these meetings so horribly uncomfortable? This was undoubtedly far worse than the last meeting with them, but I wasn't sure exactly why it was. I wasn't really eager to find out.

They only made it worse by looking us all over very closely. It looked like they were searching us for something, but what? The majority of them appeared completely emotionless, but one or two looked displeased. That minority didn't stare at me; they stared at Gideon with highly disapproving looks. Gideon ignored them, likely a wise move on his part. Was it possible that I had someone on my side? If I was lucky… and I hoped with all my heart that I was.

Prue glanced to the side and I saw that only Piper and Leo had followed us. I was pleased to see that Melchior had wisely decided to not come up. I had hoped that he would do that, but he was an awfully daring man. At least, that was the impression that I had gotten.

But now was really not the time to think about what kind of a person Melchior was. I had to concentrate on the Elders, even though that was highly unpleasant. I couldn't avoid it; I was standing in front of them, and it seemed like they were going to be handing me my sentence pretty soon. I wasn't sure if I wanted them to speak or not. While I dreaded what they were going to do to me, I also wanted to know what was going to happen to Prue. I was surprised that they had resolved the issue so quickly, but it was a good thing… right?

"Prudence Halliwell," an Elder began, "we have been discussing your situation with great care, and we have come up with a plan that will resolve this issue. There are actually three options, but only one will be best for the greater good."

"One of the options was to allow you and Christina Raven to continue switching off," another Elder continued. "That, however, cannot benefit the greater good. That option has therefore been eliminated."

"The second option was for Christina to conceive a child, a body into which you would be reborn," a third Elder spoke. "But considering her age, that option was decided against."

_"Thank God," _I said. _"That's just… I could not do that."_

"The third option is the one that we have decided on," Gideon spoke. It figured that _he_ would be the one to tell me my fate. "It is an option that may seem rather severe, but it is entirely necessary." He paused. "We have decided that Christina Raven will have to be sacrificed to serve the greater good. You will both undergo a ceremony which will remove her spirit and allow you to completely control her body."

Sacrificed? The words hit me bluntly. I so numb that I could just barely understand what they meant. They were going to kill me. This wasn't possible. I couldn't die. Death had always been so unreal to me. I had never faced death or feared for my life. Now the Elders were calmly telling me that they were going to kill me so that Prue could have my body. I didn't want to die. Why were they doing this to me?

"You are all unbelievable," Prue said, furious. "You're actually telling me that you're going to murder an innocent so that I can live? Have you suddenly switched sides? Last time I checked, good saved innocents. Now all of a sudden, we're destroying them? You can't do that. I'm not a Charmed One anymore. The Power of Three is found in my sisters, not me. I died, the Power of Three was reborn, and now I have to move on. You gave us three options, and I'm taking the first one right now. But I'm going to offer you my options. First option: you do the ceremony, but you take my soul out, not Christina's. Second option: you get my body back and bring me back to life that way. Now that you understand that I am not going to take this crap, I want you to think long and hard about my options and decide which one you would prefer. Do you all get it?"

"This is not in your power, Prue," Gideon said. "Your body cannot be brought back to life. And you are an important soul despite the fact that you are no longer a Charmed One. You will be instrumental in the fight against evil. We need you, but Christina…"

"What? You don't need her? Do you have any idea how powerful she is? With the right training, she could become more powerful than the Charmed Ones," Prue said.

"There's just one problem with that, Prue," another Elder spoke up. "Christina has no destiny. The Angel of Destiny never created a life path for Christina. All people are born with a path to take, as you know, and existence is carefully planned out. We know about every person on this Earth, but as far we know, she was never born. She can't be sensed or controlled. It's as though she isn't real."

"Well, you had problems knowing about Paige," Prue pointed out. "And she's half-whitelighter."

"We as Elders didn't know about Paige," Gideon said, "but there are other beings that control existence. Those beings knew about Paige. But they know nothing of Christina. We don't know what she is, but it is quite clear that she was never meant to exist."

"I'm sure that makes this a lot easier for all you," Piper spoke suddenly. "You can get off guilt-free after you kill her. But I have stand by Prue on this. Bring Prue back to life in her own body. Don't destroy Christina."

Gideon looked to Leo. "Leo, explain to them why this is necessary. They understand it better if you say it."

"I can't do that, Gideon, because Prue is right. Christina deserves to live," Leo said. "She's a powerful witch, but she is innocent. She didn't ask for this, and she didn't seek Prue out. Their paths crossed, and she does have a path. You just can't control it."

"You are all making a mistake," Gideon said. "This is necessary for the greater good. You must think of that. You cannot stop this."

"Oh yeah?" Prue challenged. "Just watch me." Leo orbed us out, and that part of the ordeal was over. But this had still only just begun.


	8. Identity Crisis

**A/N: thank you, furypiper, for reviewing. Hmm… I seem to have forgotten where they were too. Hang on… Ah, Phoebe and Paige are both at work. As for me, I have been helping my parents fix up my old house so that we can sell it. **

"The Elders are out to kill Christy?" Phoebe questioned incredulously.

"That's the gist of it," Prue said as she mixed the potion. She shook her head. "They've gone too far this time. Who knows what they'll do in order to ensure that she dies." She suddenly stopped and pushed the potion away. "This isn't fair! They have so much power. What if we can't protect her?"

I could feel the anger in her. It felt kind of strange that she was so concerned about my well-being. I knew that Prue and her sisters were meant to protect innocents, but it was still odd. I barely knew them. _"Prue, just calm down. I'll be fine. And if I go, it's probably just my time to go. Okay?"_

_No, Christy, it's not okay. I know that you're lying. You're afraid of dying; I can feel it, _Prue responded.

"We'll be able to protect her," Piper assured Prue. "We won't let her die."

Prue just sighed and went back to the potion. The moment we had arrived home, Prue had started mixing potions obsessively. She was preparing herself for anything that the Elders might sic on me. She hadn't even stopped when Paige and Phoebe had arrived home from work. The younger sisters now knew all about Melchior and the Elders, as well as all the other things that we had discovered at Magic School. Amazingly, they could understand it all. I could hardly understand it, and I had gone through it all.

"You are now playing by the Elders' rules," Melchior said, "and they don't like to lose. However, I am proof that they can be beaten. They are not all powerful, even though they like to pretend that they are."

"What do we do now?" Paige asked after a long silence.

"I'll tell you exactly what you are going to do," Melchior said. "You are all going to get out of my way and allow me access to Christina. If there is a power that is stronger than the Elders' power, I guarantee it will be found in her."

Prue considered him. She didn't seem to want to give up her position or her task, but she did anyway. I could feel her mind racing as I was pushed forward. It seemed that it wasn't an appropriate time to argue with her, though I did want her to keep in control. I wasn't ready to face my powers head on, but it seemed that it was now or never.

"I will have to use the basement for this study. Is that permissible?" Melchior questioned Piper.

"Of course," Piper said.

"Basement?" I repeated with a certain amount of dismay. I had a problem with basements - I avoided them at all costs. Prue's tale of the Woogyman wasn't exactly comforting either. "Uh… Let's go." I didn't have time for anxiety. I had to suck it up and face my little fear. I followed Melchior to the basement, forcing myself to think of something pleasant. Unfortunately, thoughts of the Elders' plot and past experiences in basements kept coming to mind. Prue wasn't going to distract me with anything, so I decided to talk. That was my solution for everything, really. "How are you going to separate my abilities from Prue's?" I asked Melchior.

"I'll tell you in a moment," Melchior replied.

I should have known that my little distraction wouldn't work; Melchior wasn't much of a talker. We reached the bottom of the cellar stairs, and I looked around. It didn't look too bad… I jumped as Melchior snapped open the black bag and set it on the ground. He then pointed a stick at the bag.

"Work, damn you," Melchior murmured. His brow was furrowed in concentration.

"Um, maybe I can help," I said and approached the bag. I held my hand over it. The equipment that I had seen earlier appeared in the basement.

Melchior looked at me, head cocked to the side. The look on his face was too amusing for me to remain completely serious. I hid my smile by glancing at the things that I had just called forth. "You are only the second person I have ever met who has been able to influence my magic," he said.

"Well, it's just the call," I said uncomfortably. "It's not really an influence." I cleared my throat.

Melchior snapped out of his daze and ordered me to stand in the middle of a circle that swiftly appeared on the basement floor.

I did as he said.

"Now, Prue, I need you to astral project," Melchior said. "Use Christina's body as a base. You can feel her very strongly. Use that awareness. Her body is your own. There is no barrier between your soul and her body. Now astral project."

Suddenly, I could no longer feel Prue in me. Panicking at the sudden sensation, I looked around for her. Relief washed over me as I saw that she was standing next to me. She was mostly solid, but she was glowing slightly.

"This is different from my usual form," Prue said, looking herself over.

"You are not actually astral projecting," Melchior said. "You are now somewhat of a ghost, but you'll be able to return to Christina's body once I have finished."

I didn't like feeling Prue's absence. It was as though a piece of myself was missing. With a start, I realized that I had come to depend on Prue. I wondered if she felt the same emptiness that I did. I watched her. She was fidgeting a little and appeared a bit pained. I could read the emotions on her face, and she was definitely feeling what I was feeling.

Melchior drew my attention when he started to scatter herbs along the outline of the circle. He spoke a strange language as he did this. Once he had completed the circle, he came up to me and smeared some kind of oil across my forehead. He then produced a small potion bottle that was filled with an inky black substance. "Drink this."

Did I have any reason to trust him? I was completely vulnerable to his magic without Prue's offensive power. I could orb out, but what if the herbs had done something to that power? I took the bottle but did not drink it.

"I am not going to poison you," Melchior said.

Melchior had nothing to gain from my death. I decided to trust him and drank down the potion. It was scorching. I had just barely swallowed it when I started to cough, my whole body burning from the heat. I took in a few wheezing breaths and coughed once more. It felt like the heat was coming back up. I hoped that I wasn't going to see the potion again. Something did come up and out of my mouth, but it was a long jet of flames. The jet dissipated and I breathed out a large amount of smoke. "What in high hell was that?"

"That," Melchior said, smiling, "was even better than I had imagined."

"What do you mean by that?" I waved away the smoke.

"The potion I gave you is meant to amplify your power over the elements," Melchior explained. "Fire is one of the most difficult elements to control. If someone actually manages to summon a flame, it is usually small and unwieldy. But that." He clapped his hands together. "That was masterfully done."

"Oh," I said. "So that's good, huh?"

"It's wonderful." His smile didn't fade as he picked out another potion.

I glanced at Prue. She shrugged.

"Let's try this one," Melchior said and handed me a vial filled with a red liquid.

"What does it do?"

"Just drink it."

I poured it into my mouth and almost gagged. It was disgusting. I quickly swallowed it down. "Ugh!" I made a face. "It tastes like the medicine my mother used to give me." I waited for something weird to happen. "Nothing's happening."

"I know." He turned away from me and did something to his hand. He then turned back and came over to me.

There was a long gash in the palm of his hand. "Why did you do that?" I took his hand and gasped as the wound was transferred from his hand to mine. I felt pain only for a second before the wound closed, leaving no evidence that it had ever been there.

Melchior closely examined my hand. "Perfect." He looked up into my eyes. "That potion was designed for whitelighters in training. It's the first step in the process of learning how to heal."

"How do you know how to make it?"

"I was the one who designed it," Melchior said. "The Elders didn't let my talents go to waste, even though they condemned me."

"Why'd you use it on me?"

"To see how willing your body it to accept magic," Melchior responded. "But this next potion will show me how willing your soul is." He got out a large potion bottle that contained a blue fluid.

I cringed at the idea of drinking all that, but I took it anyways. "Are you sure I should take all of these at once? Won't this kind of overload my body?"

"Once your have preformed the magic the potion is meant for, all traces of the potion disappear," Melchior said. "It's like you never took them."

I accepted that and gulped down the potion. It tasted a little like lemonade. "Now that tastes a lot better." My eyes rolled back and I fell to the ground.

"Christy!" I heard Prue call.

"She's all right," Melchior said. "Just let her do this."

I tried to move my body, but I couldn't. _Oh come on! _I was conscious, but I couldn't will my body to move. Thinking of the purpose of the potion, I decided to use my spirit to move myself. I found an awareness of my soul and forced my soul to move. I sat up and found that I was halfway out of my body. "Move it, you!" I ordered my body. I watched my eyes start to open and felt myself go back. I got up. "How am I doing so far?"

"Excellently," Melchior said. He reached into thin air and pulled something out. "Now this is something that I don't believe you will be able to handle." His tone was grim. "But let's try it anyway." He pushed a stick into my hand.

I studied it and then stared at Melchior quizzically. "What is it?"

"A wand."

"What do I do with it?"

"Just wave it in the air," he instructed.

I waved it. A burst of light erupted from the wand. It formed into a swirling vortex and suddenly wrapped itself around me. My whole body buzzed from the light's energy. I was in awe of the power that it had… the power that I had. I was disappointed when the light ended.

Melchior looked absolutely overjoyed. It was like Christmas had come early. "Wonderful! You are simply amazing, Christina."

"I am? Why didn't you think that it would work?"

"There is a difference between the magic of wizards and the magic of witches," Melchior explained, "and that difference lies within the wand. Witches like Prue are unable to command the power of the wand but can command powers without it. Wizards like myself can use the wand but are dependent on it. I can use magic only when I have my wand with me. But my magic carries no consequences for personal gain, though there are certain limitations. The two magic types keep each other in balance. You are a witch, but you have a mix of magical abilities. You can orb even though you don't have the genes for it, and you can control a wand even though you aren't meant to. You are a combination of all the good magic found in this world."

I blinked. "I see. Why, though?"

"I do not know the answer to that," Melchior admitted. "But I will find it out."

"Can I… uh… May I keep the wand?" I asked. I didn't really want to relinquish it.

"Of course. It was made for you and you alone."

I felt a small surge of power as I realized that the wand was mine. But that was overshadowed by confusion. _It is quite clear that she was never meant to exist… We don't know what she is… It's as though she isn't real…_I didn't even know what I was anymore. At the end of all this, would I have any identity to cling to?

"Just one more potion," Melchior said. He produced a vial that contained a smoking gray liquid. It looked rather thick.

I swallowed the potion, not liking the way it went down - like something was crawling down my throat. "Yucky."

"You have a certain way with words that astounds me."

I winced. He was doing it again. I opened my mouth to say something back when prickles of pain went up and down my arms. I yelped and hugged them instinctively to my body.

"It's just the potion," Melchior said and pried my arms apart. "Good."

"Good? I'm bleeding!" Tiny dots of blood appeared along my arms. Slowly, the blood droplets oozed together to form parallel lines. They stayed the same for a while.

"Get on with it," Melchior said impatiently.

The pain abated and the blood started to turn to a black tinge.

"Yes," Melchior whispered. "But what of the whitelighter ability?"

The blood turned back to red, then began to fade away until it had disappeared.

"Okay, what was that all about?" I questioned.

"The lines signify that your witch abilities were passed down to you through your blood line," Melchior said. "The abilities probably just remained unknown. The black tells me that your wand magic derives from dead blood. A past life, specifically. The blood disappeared because your orbing does not come from blood. It is an ability that your soul carries with it. I suppose it has for a long time. Your wand magic and orbing should not be. The Elders would not allow such power to be born into the world. But as you apparently were never born, it happened."

"You know, all this is quite overwhelming," I said, feeling tired. "I don't understand it at all. It seems that I'm breaking all kinds of rules just by existing, and I'd like to know why."

"I believe that the answer lies in your past lives," Melchior said. "However, that is enough exploration for now. This has probably taken a lot out of you. I will inform Leo of your abilities, and you should rest. Tomorrow is going to be busy."

"What about me?" Prue asked.

"Oh, you can just step back into Christina," Melchior said.

She did and I felt complete again.

_"I don't think I like being out of your body, Christy," _Prue said, a frown in her voice.

_I don't like it either, but eventually you're going to go back to your own body. _

_"Well, let's discuss your abilities."_

_First I'm getting out of this basement. _I practically ran up the stairs. _And now I think I shall try out this wand. _

_"Christy…"_

* * *

"Prue, I have no idea what I'm doing," I said desperately.

_"Which is exactly why you should stop," _Prue replied.

"Sometimes it works, though," I protested. Looking over my shredded suitcase, I was inclined to do as Prue said. "Melchior would kill me if he knew." I started to feel a little guilty. "Oh, all right." I put the wand on top of the dresser. "There. The wand is safely out of my hands.

A loud crashing sound floated up the stairs.

"That was not my fault!" I said immediately, backing away from the wand.

_"Just go check it out."_

"Right." I raced downstairs and found that the sisters were fighting a demon. Piper had been thrown into the wall, and it looked like the demon was going to do the same to Phoebe.

Prue got in control and sent the demon flying across the room. "Don't you dare touch her!"

The demon jumped up and threw a fireball at Prue. Before she could deflect it, it turned into a ball of orbs and was sent back at the demon. The demon was unharmed. The same couldn't be said for him once Paige threw a potion at the demon. He burst into flames. The three sisters swarmed around Phoebe.

"Are you okay, Pheebs?" Paige asked.

"Did the demon hurt you?" Piper questioned.

"Do you need Leo?" Prue asked.

"I'm fine," Phoebe said. "The demon didn't even touch me. The baby's fine too. Piper, are _you _all right? You got thrown into the wall, for goodness' sake."

"Yes," Piper said. "I'm used to it."

"That was a little too close for comfort," Prue said. "We need to make sure that you don't get in harm's way again, Phoebe. Whenever a demon shows up, you need to get away, got that?"

"Prue," Phoebe groaned, rolling her eyes, "I can take care of myself. The fact that I'm pregnant doesn't change that."

"Yes, it does," Paige argued. "You need to be more careful."

"What about the Power of Three?" Phoebe pointed out. "I need to be a part of it."

"Not necessarily," Prue said thoughtfully. "I think that we might have a loophole. The Power of Three requires three sisters, right?

"Well, yeah, but I don't think you'd be able call on the Power of Three," Phoebe said, catching onto her idea. "It has to be the three sisters that have the powers of Melinda Warren."

"We could still try it, though," Piper said.

"Fine. We'll try it," Phoebe agreed. "But that's still dangerous for you three."

"Every demon encounter is dangerous," Paige said.

"What are you still doing up, Christina?" Melchior asked as he entered the room.

Prue slid back. "Prue had to take care of a demon."

"Prue can use her powers outside of your body," Melchior said. "I mean it when I say that tomorrow will be busy. Now get to sleep."

I looked to the sisters for help, but they didn't say anything. "You had better not be lying to me, Melchior," I grumbled as I went up the stairs.

"Trust me, Christina, I'm probably understating it."

"We'll just see about that."

* * *

A mellow voice was singing softly in my ear in the same foreign language that Melchior had used. It was a woman's voice. It sounded like she was right next to me. I found myself humming the tune along with her. In my sleepy state, I wasn't the least bit bothered by the sudden presence. "Shadows of the past," I sang the last line with her.

_"She sings in her sleep?" _

I rolled over and started to become aware of myself. "I don't sing in my sleep. That woman was singing," I said.

_"What woman?"_

I opened my eyes a little. The woman that I had seen in Magic School was sitting on the edge of my bed. "That woman," I said, smiling a little.

_"You must be dreaming."_

"No, she's right – oh!" I sat up. The woman reached out and touched my cheek. I suddenly felt too drowsy to do anything other than fall back to sleep. So I did. I fell into a deep sleep, during which I did not dream. At times, a few snatches of the woman's song would float across my mind.

"Shadows of the past," she sang, switching to English. "Christina… Christy… Christina, it is time to get up."

Someone shook me awake roughly.

"Hey!" I opened my eyes and stared ruefully at Melchior. "I was sleeping very peacefully. Why'd you have to go and do a thing like that?"

"I told you," he said. "We have a busy day ahead of us. Get ready." He left the room.

I groaned and snuggled back into the covers.

"I will be training you today, even if I have to drag you down to the basement in your nightgown," Melchior said through the closed door.

Muttering under my breath, I got ready. Thoughts of the previous day came to me again. Would the Elders try to get the sisters to agree? Would I be brought up there again? Would they send someone to kill me? I swallowed hard as the last question came up.

_"No one is going to kill you, Christy," _Prue said.

"This is a great way to start the day."

"Christina," Melchior drawled.

"I'm coming, all right?" Grouchy, afraid, and overwhelmed… It sure was a bright new day.


	9. The Worldly Gap

"Stop that!" Melchior shouted. "Stop that right now!"

"What?" I asked as I lowered my wand.

"You must not wave that wand about," Melchior said, looking furious. "You haven't been listening to me at all. You'll get both of us killed at the rate you're going." He scowled and snatched the wand away from me.

"I resent that," I said, crossing my arms. "I listened to every single thing you said. And I followed your directions exactly as you stated them. You told me to swish the wand."

"Yes, I did tell you to _swish_ the wand," Melchior said, swishing my wand in the air. "You, however, were wildly waving your wand all over. I'm not sure that you're ready for the wand yet."

"I think you just said a tongue-twister," I said. "And I am ready for the wand. You just weren't clear enough."

Melchior shook his head. "We'll practice wand motions for right now," he said, putting my wand away. "Particular wand motions go with a certain type of spell."

"You haven't even taught me any spells," I pointed out.

"I am rather afraid of what would happen if you made use of both your will and the spell," Melchior said, wincing slightly. "So you will only learn how to will the wand to work."

"Right. How many wand motions could there be?" I asked. "Why do we even have to cover this?"

"Because you cannot tell the difference between a swish and a wave," Melchior said. "You must know the basics before you can tackle your magic."

"But the basics are so boring."

"Do you want to learn magic or not?"

"Yes…" I said slowly.

"Then I suggest that you do as I say or you may find yourself permanently without a wand. Never before have I met such an irritating person such as yourself," Melchior said.

"You poor thing," I said sympathetically. "Okay, so a swish is like this." I swished an invisible wand. "And a wave is this." I waved the nonexistent wand.

"Yes," Melchior said. "A swishing motion summons less energy than a waving motion, therefore, a swish is meant for simpler magic-"

"While a wave is meant for more complicated magic," I finished for him. "I understand it, Melchior."

"Do expect me to be in awe?" he said severely. "A flick - " he demonstrated - "is meant to drive things away. This motion - " he pulled his wand back in an arch - "is meant to draw things towards you."

I imitated his moves, quickly growing bored. I was not going to say anything, though. I wasn't going to give him an excuse to stop teaching me. I wished that Prue was there to help me get through this lesson, but Prue was experimenting with her spiritual form and the Power of Three. I sighed and concentrated on Melchior, determined to show him that I could handle magic.

"Those are all the motions," he said once we had finished. Surprisingly, there was a number of them.

"Now magic," I said and called for my wand.

Melchior grabbed it before it could reach me. "No, not yet. Now we're going to work on your will."

"You and I both know that I have enough will for ten people," I snorted.

"That's part of the problem," Melchior said. "You may have the will of ten people, but you are only one person. You must learn to control that will."

"How do you intend to teach me that?" I asked, a little annoyed. It seemed that my tremendous enthusiasm earlier had made Melchior decide to take his time teaching me magic. I had to be more patient and control myself.

"I believe that you are doing it right now," Melchior said. "You are controlling your emotions and your desires. You are focusing on the goal of getting your wand back, aren't you?" He had a expression that told me he could read me like a book.

"Yes," I replied. "But controlling myself is not one of my strong points, as you already know."

"Which is precisely why you must do some work before you move onto magic," Melchior told me. "I rushed you by pushing you straight to magic. That was a mistake on my part. If you use magic without having control over yourself, the results could be disastrous, especially when your strength is factored in."

"How long will this take?"

"A while."

I felt myself staring to get annoyed. I opened my mouth to say a few things, but I clamped it shut before I could. I had to stop saying everything that I felt. It never helped me. I was a hasty individual, and Melchior was right. Haste and magic did not go together. Instead of ranting, I took a deep breath.

"I see that we're already making progress," Melchior commented. "Good job."

I smiled. I didn't trust myself to speak.

"But are you ready for the next step?"

"What step?"

"Do you want this wand?" Melchior inquired, holding out my wand.

I was confused. What was he doing? "Of course I do."

Melchior drew back his hand. "Well, you can't have it."

"You're just going to taunt me?" I said crossly. "I can't understand you, Melchior. You do everything that you can to annoy me, then you tell me to control myself. And you have only been here two days. How do you manage it? Doesn't this exhaust you?"

"I see you're not ready for the next step," Melchior said. "But that's going to take some time. I just thought that the strength of your powers might help."

"Obviously not." I went over to the stairs.

"Where do you think you're going?" Melchior asked, making no effort to stop me.

"I'm going to watch Prue," I said. "I'm too annoyed to try to work on controlling myself." I opened the basement door.

"You're going to regret this," Melchior said as he turned to work on some potions.

"Who says so?" I demanded. "How much can magic help me if the Elders are the ones who control it? I'm not free from them like you are. I'm helpless against the Elders."

"You're giving up, then?" Melchior wasn't looking at me.

I flushed with anger as I charged back down the stairs. "I am _not _giving up, Melchior. I know that you're trying to trick me. My mother uses reverse psychology on me all the time. It used to work on me until I figured it out."

"And yet you are still responding to it," Melchior stated. "You respond with anger, a reaction that leads you to blindly do as the person commands. The only way to beat this is to gain control over yourself."

"But… But that's what you want me to do anyways! So it would still work, but… argh!" My head hurt from thinking about this.

"Time is of the essence, Christina," Melchior said. "I don't know how much time we have left. The Elders will notice my absence soon, and they will try to find me. I may be free, but I still cannot rise above them. I need your help."

I narrowed my eyes. "You're truly evil, Melchior." I sighed. "I'll help you, but first you have to help me."

"Of course. Now, work on controlling yourself." He looked at me with the odd look I had seen yesterday. "You remind me so much of her…"

"I remind you of whom?"

"No one. Just get to work."

I stared at Melchior for a while, prompting him to snap at me. But there was something different about him, as I could easily see. I was going to find out what was up with him.

* * *

My method of finding out the truth basically consisted of asking Melchior who 'she' was every five minutes. "Who is 'she'?" I asked again. "Just tell me a name. Any name." 

"Silence, Christina!" Melchior bellowed. "I will not tell you who she is. It is not important. Leave. Me. Alone." Warning dripped from his voice, but his eyes didn't match the tone.

"You want to tell me," I said pointedly. "I can see it in your eyes."

"Enough! You have practiced enough for the day," Melchior said. "Now get out of this basement!"

I smirked. "I'm getting to you. You should be setting an example for me, yet you're losing control."

He gave me a fierce look. I gave up and walked up the stairs as slowly as possible.

"I know that you can move faster than that," he said, "and I would suggest that you do."

I rolled my eyes and left. The sisters were still working in the attic. I started to climb up to them, but they emerged and started to come down the stairs. "How did it go?" I asked eagerly.

"Perfectly," Prue said, grinning. "I knew it would work. The Power of Three can be Paige, Piper, and I, Phoebe, Piper, and I, Piper, Phoebe, and Paige…"

"I get the idea, Prue," I said.

"She's just rubbing it in," Phoebe said. "And it took a few tries, missy."

"You're just pissed that I was right," Prue said superiorly.

"I think it's hormones," Piper said.

Phoebe was about to respond when Paige yelled, "Darklighter!"

I whipped around and faced the darklighter.

"Christy, move!" Prue called as she ran down the stairs.

I was frozen to the spot. I couldn't remember how to move, let alone orb. Everything was going in slow motion. I could hear voices calling to me, but I couldn't hear what they were saying. The darklighter raised the crossbow… released the arrow… and the arrow tore into my chest. I looked down at it, not believing that this was happening. Excruciating pain was ravaging my body. I touched the blood and finally realized what was happening. I swayed, then fell to the ground. "Prue?" I whispered, not quite sure of where she was. "Is this what it's like to die?"

I closed my eyes and slipped out of myself. The pain ebbed away. I found myself floating over my body. I was vaguely aware of the fact that Piper had vanquished the darklighter and that Leo had appeared in the room. He healed my body. Then everything disappeared. I was still in the Manor, but it was completely empty. I ran through the house but found nothing. "Prue? Hello?" I went outside and gaped at the sight. The street was deserted. Suddenly, I remembered that I was supposed to be dying. I looked down, but the wound was gone. Either I was okay, or… "I'm dead."

I was shocked. I was really dead. Fear jumped up within me, but I really had nothing to fear. I was in the ghostly realm. Nothing could kill me again. I wouldn't have to worry about anything from this point on. Calm started to settle over my body. Everything was going to be okay.

A white light appeared before me. It was time to move on. I felt at peace as I walked towards the light. I was about to touch it when I fell into darkness. All light had disappeared. There was nothing, absolutely nothing.

Prue's description of the worldly gap came back to me as I floated in the nothingness. _There was nothing there. I was surrounded by darkness. I couldn't move or speak. Time had no meaning there. _

I was in the worldly gap. I was not meant to die. _I should be alive. _But things would be much easier for everyone now. Prue would be able to use my body. The Elders would be pleased with that. I felt afraid again. Prue had stayed in the worldly gap for months, and she still hadn't moved on. She had gone to my body. Where was I going to go? There was no guarantee that anything was going to be all right. I longed for the white light. Even though there would be no chance of coming back to life, things at least would be assured.

Out of the darkness, the familiar woman emerged.

"Who are you? Why do you keep coming to me? What do you want?" is what I wanted to ask, but I couldn't say anything.

The woman looked at me knowingly. "I am you," the woman said, speaking the strange language. I understood it this time. She reached out to touch me, but withdrew her hand quickly. "We are the same person, but I am not Christina, just as you are not quite me. I appear to you because the Elders are interfering with your destiny. It is just as I feared. They do not understand, and you do not remember. I am here to remind you. I am merely a memory, no more real than the first vision you had. I am a shadow of the past."

_Shadows of the past. _

She nodded. "I want to show you what you need to see. I need you to remember your purpose. I would tell you your purpose, but I do not have the ability. As I said, I am not real - I have no will of my own. We are not free. We may not be controlled by the Elders, but we are under the power of the natural order. We forget, but you will remember enough to allow you to find your purpose. Pay attention to everything that you see, but remember that it is just a memory. If you don't, you could be destroyed. And we've gone too far for that to happen." She smiled sadly. "We came close to losing everything, but the worldly gap has given us a second chance. Remember the past." She backed into the darkness. "Shadows of the past."

"I will remember," I said, finding my voice. "I will find my purpose." The darkness around me melted away gradually. I watched as a scene began to form around me. Bright light appeared, temporarily blinding me. I blinked.

I was walking along a dirt path. As I passed the other villagers, they stared blatantly at me and whispered amongst themselves. I did not acknowledge them. I have grown accustomed to being the odd one of the village. It sometimes worried me, though, for it would be quite easy for the clueless villagers to accuse me of witchcraft. But I had no time for thoughts of their ignorance. I was late for the meeting, and Dion was not going to be pleased. Sighing, I pushed on and entered the meeting place.

"Maia, you are late," Dion said once he had spotted me.

"As I already know." I scanned the area. "Where is Laius?"

Dion leaned against a tree and shut his eyes.

"Dion?" I said, my voice unsteady. "What has happened to Lauis?"

"Lauis is dead," Dion said, eyes still closed.

"No," I whispered. "It cannot be. Who did this?"

Dion opened his eyes. "You know who did it," he said. I could see the anger burning in his eyes.

My own anger surged through me. "The Elders!" I hissed. "What was their reason this time?"

"They didn't bother to provide a reason," Dion told me. "I only knew it was them because I recognized the magic." He paused. "The Elders know that we're getting closer to finding the formula."

"Give up on the Elixir, Dion!" I cried. "It is forbidden, and it is not worth the difficulties that you have endured."

"But to live forever…"

"How can you dream of living forever?" I demanded. "How can you when you have never even lived a life? You have given your life to the Elixir; your life is in its hands forever. That is how it makes you immortal!"

"We can beat them, Maia," he said.

"We can never beat them," I said bitterly. "We have tried so many times, but they are too powerful. We have watched each other die over and over again. We barely are able to build our lives. I am a slave to them, and so are you."

"You will not speak like that again, Maia," Dion commanded me.

"You will not command me to do anything," I lashed out. "I am my own guardian, Dion. I was made to be that way, and I cannot be ruled by you."

"You also cannot be ruled by the Elders," Dion said.

I finally broke down. Dion held me as I cried. "Lauis is gone. We cannot continue this without him."

_This is only a memory, _I remembered. I stepped out of the body and watched Maia and Dion.

"Then we will start again in the next life," Dion said. "They won't let us remain here much longer. We remember too much, yet again."

I was suddenly struck by a realization. Dion was Melchior. He didn't look like himself, but I could still see that Melchior had once been Dion.

"It's always easier to forget," Maia sighed. "They'll try to destroy me again, though."

"They have never succeeded, Maia, and they never will," Dion assured her.

This had to be a past life that I had shared with Melchior. Who 'Lauis' was, I didn't know, but I knew that I would soon find out.

"They are coming," Maia said.

"I know, Maia. We will meet again."

Another memory swirled around me. I found myself in a new body, but I easily escaped it to watch from my usual view. I was astounded when I saw who I had been in this life. I had been a man. There was something very wrong about that. _Well, we are supposed to learn throughout our lives. We can't learn too much if we're the same sex in every life. _I felt much better when I saw Melchior. He was in a woman's body. Two other women and a man were walking with us. I peered into their souls and would have fallen over if I hadn't been floating.

The other man was Prue. One of the women was Paige. The other woman was… Leo? I had definitely not seen that one coming. I allowed their names to come to me.

"You are making this much more difficult than necessary, Bonifacio" Ariadna (Paige) said.

"I cannot avoid the issue of the Elders," Bonifacio (me) said. "I am coming closer to the truth, but the Elders do not want me to discover it."

"They are still getting in your way?" Clarisa (Leo) asked.

"Of course they are," Sergio (Prue) answered for me… er, Bonifacio. "The Elders will never stop."

"What makes you think that what they are hiding concerns you, Bonifacio?" Mireia (Melchior) questioned.

"I don't know," Bonifacio admitted.

I closed my eyes and silently recited his next words in sync with him.

"It's just something that I can feel… like a memory that I have forgotten. The Elders are keeping something from me, and I should be able to claim it," Bonifacio said.

"And what about the Verum?" Sergio asked.

"They still won't allow me to come near it," Bonifacio said.

"But your powers…" Clarisa said.

"They do not matter. I am not powerful enough to come near the Verum," Bonifacio. "That's what they say, at least."

"Those fools," Mireia muttered. "They cannot handle the Verum."

"No one can, Mireia," Ariadna said. "Not since the Living Balance was destroyed."

"She wasn't destroyed," Bonifacio said. "No one could destroy her."

"They did," Sergio argued.

"Perhaps."

I don't know how many memories I watched after the first two. Some of the details began to blur together, but I was able to pull a few key things from the memories. One key thing was that Piper, Paige, Prue, Leo, Phoebe, Melchior, and I had a very deep connection to each other. Another thing that I made a note of was the Living Balance. She came up often within the memories, as did the Verum. Those three things were crucial. I had to explore all of them further, but first I had to get into a body. As the darkness returned, I tried to think of a way to get out of the Worldly Gap. I came up with nothing.

Hopelessness took over as I resigned myself to existence in the Worldly Gap. I kept thinking of Prue. I really missed hearing her voice. I also missed her sisters and their little antics. I wondered about Phoebe's baby and her engagement to Cole. _How's Prue doing in my body? _

My thoughts took an unwelcome turn to the Elders. _They're probably celebrating, _I thought to myself. _Gideon… _My blood boiled as I thought of him in triumph. _I'll bet that he sent that darklighter after me! _He had been especially threatening, and Prue and I had both felt something off about him. But I just couldn't believe that an Elder would actually do that. Would he really hire an evil being just to kill me? _They did want to kill me for the greater good. Just how far would they go to serve the greater good? _

That would certainly keep me occupied for a while. _Let this end soon, _I begged the Worldly Gap. _Just let this end._


	10. Can't Keep Her Down

I tried to keep track of time, but it was no use. The Worldly Gap had no time. It really was nothingness.

And so I waited. And waited. I wasn't quite sure what I was waiting for. Prue had told me that she had just sort of fallen out of the Worldly Gap and into my body. It seemed that things were truly out of my control. Waiting was the only thing I could do.

But it was boring as hell. I had pondered every subject possible. I had thought about the Verum, the Living Balance, and my past lives. I had wondered what the sisters were doing. I had wondered what my parents were doing and what Melchior was up to. I had thought about Cole and Phoebe and their baby. Now I was just bored stiff, and I had run out of things to think about. Needless to say, I was quickly losing what little patience I had. I just wanted out, even if out meant moving on to the afterlife. Anything was better than the Worldly Gap.

So I floated there in the Worldly Gap, hating Gideon and feeling bored. _Get this over with. Oh please…_

"Christina Raven. Finally you turn up."

I wanted to ask who was there, but I couldn't speak.

A man appeared before me. He had blond hair and light eyes, and he was dressed in all black. In his hand, he held an aged paper. "It's time for you to move on," he said. A white light formed beside him. He held out his hand and pulled me into the light.

Then I was in a tunnel. It was the tunnel I had heard so much about. I was moving on. I felt a little afraid, of course, but at the same time, I was relieved. At least something was happening. Still, I didn't quite want to walk down that tunnel into the unknown. I looked to the man next to me. "Who are you?" I was quite pleased to find that I had my voice back.

"I am the Angel of Death," the man responded.

"I see." I looked back to the tunnel. "Do I… do I really have to go down there?" I asked, feeling more nervous now that I knew that this man really was Death.

"It is your time, Christina."

"If you say so…" I took a deep breath, then started to walk down the tunnel. The closer I drew to the end, the more confident I became. A small ache arose in my heart. I knew where I was going. I was going Home. I smiled as I reached the end of the tunnel and the light faded into a clear image.

I was in a beautiful field. It was completely breathtaking. I had never seen such splendor and purity. I drank in the sight, tears of joy straining at my eyes. I knew this place. I had been here before, many times. It was a place that was not touched by the Elders. It was safety. It was comfort. It really was Home.

I continued to walk. A part of me understood what I was going to encounter, and that part filled me with happiness.

"Oh, Christina, you're here."

I turned and saw my grandmother. She was standing there with my grandfather. I ran toward them. Grandmother caught me in a hug. "Grammy!" I had been five years old the last time I had seen my grandmother. It was wonderful to see her again. "I'm back with you."

"Yes," grandmother said, a little sadness in her voice. "I had hoped that you would have lived longer, but you're safe now. You're Home."

"I know, Grammy." I gazed at her face, almost afraid that she was going to disappear. "I'm not dreaming, am I?"

"No, you're not dreaming," grandfather assured me. "Now where's my hug?"

I smiled and threw my arms around him, inhaling his spicy scent. "I missed both you so much."

"We missed you too, Christy," grandmother said. "But we were watching over you. Through all the hard times, we were there."

"We lost you for a while, though," grandfather said. "You went to the Worldly Gap, didn't you?"

"Yeah," I responded. "But here I am. Er… Are the Elders… well, are they going to be coming here?"

"The Elders do not usually come here," grandfather told me. "And we won't let that Gideon anywhere near you."

"You know about the whole Gideon thing?" I asked, surprised. "How?"

"Christy, there is very little for the dead to do," grandmother said. "So we often gossip. And we happen to know Penny and Patricia."

"Uh… who?"

Grandfather gestured toward something behind me. "Them."

I turned around to find two women standing there.

"Ah, Christy. It's good to meet you. You protected my daughter well," the younger woman said. "I'm Patricia Halliwell, Prue's mother."

"And I'm Penny Halliwell, Prue's grandmother," the older woman said. "I believe that your stay here in the afterlife is going to be very brief."

"Why?"

"Because we don't believe that you deserved to die," Penny said. "I haven't been able to see my granddaughters lately, but I that's likely a good sign."

"Okay. Why's it a good sign?" I was significantly clueless. This magic thing was still pretty new to me.

"It would seem that the Charmed Ones have created a shield to protect themselves from the Elders," grandmother said.

"It's kind of weird to hear you talking about the magical world," I commented.

"Well, we've gotten used it," grandfather said.

"It's pretty tough world," I said. "Now, how long have I been in the Worldly Gap?"

"A little over a month."

My mouth dropped open. "I've been gone that long?"

"It could have taken much longer, Christy," Patricia said.

"But that's still a while. I've got so much to do," I said. "First, I have to get out of here. Unless Prue's doing okay in my body…" Now I was faced with a dilemma. Was I going to try to get back into my body? Or was I just going to admit defeat and allow Prue to take over my body forever? The afterlife really didn't seem so bad…

"You are going back into your body," grandfather firmly stated. "You shouldn't have died."

"But-"

"No buts about it, young lady," grandmother said. "You're going back."

I made a face. "Fine. What's the plan?"

"First," Patricia said, "we watch." She waved her hand and a strange well appeared. It was filled to the top with a golden liquid. "Show me the Charmed Ones," Patricia continued. The liquid bubbled, but no image came. Patricia frowned.

"They'll probably give us a different sign," Penny said. "We just have to wait."

"Well, they had better hurry up," Patricia said, glancing around. "We can't let the shields down too soon."

All of a sudden, a strange tremor went through the land. It wasn't like anything was really moving. It felt more like an energy. I was struck by the tremor's resemblance to what I had experienced when I had first used the wand.

"What was that?" I questioned.

"They're coming," grandmother said. "They're trying to get into Heaven."

"That's good, right?"

"Hopefully." Patricia, Penny, grandmother, and grandfather all stared into the well. Gradually, colors arose within the golden liquid. The colors melted together to form Prue.

"Christy, we need your help," she urgently said.

"I don't know how to help," I said, feeling useless. Melchior hadn't been able to teach me much about magic - certainly not enough to help now.

"Yes, you do," Prue insisted. "Just will it."

"I'll try." I closed my eyes. I didn't think of where I was or who I was with. I concentrated on my goal. I needed to let Prue and the sisters in. I had to let them in. Another tremor went through the land, but it was different.

"Keep going, Christy," grandfather whispered. "We're helping."

I concentrated harder. _Let them in. _A different sensation took over. It was like my body was nonexistent. A little panicked by the feeling, I opened my eyes just in time to watch as Prue, Piper, and Paige climbed out of the well. Prue was in her spiritual form, so I assumed that my body was still at the Manor.

"You did it, Christy," grandmother said, smiling greatly. "Now go. Quickly."

"But… I don't want to leave you," I said, tears starting to form.

"We will meet again," grandfather said.

I sniffed slightly and nodded my head. My grandparents gave me one last hug, and then I joined the sisters.

"We'll take care of the Elders," Patricia said. "Now get back into your body."

The four of us slipped into the well. The golden liquid had a numbing effect on my body, which made it very difficult to do anything but allow the liquid to move us. We fell down through the well for a long time before we landed in the attic of the Manor.

My body had been carefully placed on the ground. I was relieved to see that I didn't look at all dead. _Well, Prue has been inhabiting my body._

"Just step back in," Prue said.

"Prue, I… this was… whoa. I went to the Worldly Gap, and it was so boring," I said. "I thought about everything. I learned some stuff, though. I saw all these visions, and a shadow of the past came to me…" I wiggled my eyebrows. "Pretty impressive, isn't it?"

Prue held up her hand. "We'll talk once you're in your own body. Get in there."

"Paige, Piper," I continued, ignoring Prue, "you won't believe what I saw. It was so weird. Can you imagine Prue as a man?"

Piper burst out laughing. "I don't have to imagine it, Christy. Prue was turned into a man. It was hilarious."

Prue threw her a sour look. "It was most certainly _not_ hilarious, Piper. It was the worst experience of my life. Christina, Melchior is not here yet, but I will get him to put you back into your body."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm going." I walked over to my body and tried to step in. I couldn't. "Um… Prue? It's not working." I tried again, and again it didn't work.

"Maybe you two have to go in together," Paige suggested.

"As good an idea as any." I held out my hand. Prue took it. It was interesting to actually be able to touch Prue. It was like how it felt to share the same body, but it was also different. We both stepped into my body, and we both accepted in. My eyes fluttered open and I sat up. I moved around a bit. "Ah, it feels good to be alive." Abruptly, I noticed the absence of Phoebe. "Where's Phoebe?"

"I'm right here," Phoebe as she walked in. Cole was with her. I noted that though Prue stiffened at his presence, she didn't feel quite as vehement as she had the last time she had faced off with Cole. "They made me hide away." She glared at Paige and Piper. She was looking more pregnant than she had the last time I had seen her.

"Of course they did," I said. "Look at you. You definitely didn't look so pregnant the last time I saw you. You've been careful, right? You haven't been taking unnecessary risks?"

Phoebe rolled her eyes. "You're just like them. And now is not the time to talk: you're getting yourself down to the basement so that Melchior can protect you. We've only won half the battle."

"And you're going with her," Cole said.

"What?" Phoebe cried. "I don't need anyone to protect me. I want a piece of the action!"

"If I have to go, so do you," I said.

"We need to keep you safe, Pheebs," Piper said, shooing Phoebe toward the door.

"We need to keep you safe, Phoebe," Phoebe mimicked, making a face. "Can't let anything happen to you, Phoebe. Think of the baby, Phoebe."

"Phoebe," Paige warned.

Phoebe stuck her tongue out. We left and went down to the basement. I could hardly believe all that had happened to me. I was alive again. I had seen my grandparents. Sadness jumped up in my heart at that thought.

_"We'll be able to call upon them," _Prue said. She apparently understood exactly what I was thinking.

_I know, _I said. _But still… It was a short visit. I really miss them_.

_"I understand, Christy."_

_Yeah… So, how was my body?_

_"I had almost forgotten what it was like to have a period," _Prue said ruefully. _"However, I was quickly reminded of how much it sucks. I can't believe you have to go through that much PMS. Even I didn't have to go through such hell when I was alive."_

I smiled. _Sorry about that._

_"Well, I rediscovered the wonders of Midol." _

_Mmm. That's usually my savior. _My smirk widened as I spotted Melchior. "Melchior!" I held my arms out, my head tilted to the side. "Give me a hug."

"You're finally back," Melchior said. "You've been holding everything up."

"Melchior, she just returned from the dead. Could you be a little nicer?" Phoebe said.

"That's okay," I said. "I know he missed me." I blew him a kiss. He scowled.

"I see Phoebe hasn't told you about her vision," Melchior commented off-handedly.

Phoebe's eyes widened. "What vision, Melchior? I think you're confused."

"I'm quite sure that I'm not," Melchior responded. "Christina should know what you saw."

_"Oh no she shouldn't," _Prue muttered.

I was extremely confused. I looked from Phoebe to Melchior, hoping to gain some clues from their expressions. "What are you talking about? What vision?"

"It's nothing," Phoebe said quickly. Too quickly.

"It's mostly certainly significant, Phoebe," Melchior said. "She should know about it. Keeping it from her will accomplish nothing."

"And what will telling her accomplish?" Phoebe shot back.

"Quite a lot," Melchior said. "She will be able to prepare herself."

"Ahem," I loudly said. "I'm still here. Don't I have a say in this?"

"No," Phoebe said.

"You're not protecting her by keeping it from her," Melchior told Phoebe.

"What is it?" I asked, growing tired of this game. "What did you see?"

Phoebe just shook her head. "You don't need to know. Trust me. You don't need that weight." She looked at Melchior. "And we don't even know if it was really Christy. It could have been Prue."

"Fine. Christina, continue practicing controlling your emotions," Melchior ordered.

"Hey, I just came back from the dead. Can't I get a break?" I pouted.

"We don't have the time," Melchior said, throwing me his familiar glare.

"Melchior, we are not playing beat the clock," Phoebe said. "There is no time limit. Christy can go at her own pace."

_Prue, what was the vision about? _

_"I'm not going to tell you, Christy," _said Prue. _"I agree with Phoebe."_

_You're such a meanie_, I told her in a whiny voice.

Prue laughed. _"I've really missed you."_

_I missed you too. The Worldly Gap is such an awful place. _Suddenly, I remembered something that I had promised myself I would immediately ask Melchior. "Melchior, who is 'she'?" I asked, using air quotes.

"Don't start on _that_ again!" Melchior barked.

"Touchy, aren't we?"

Now it was Phoebe's turn to be confused. "She? What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," Melchior responded grumpily. He went over to a table of equipment and started to fiddle with various things.

"Somebody's in a bad mood," I commented. "Anyways, Melchior told me that I remind him so much of 'her'. He won't tell me who 'she' is."

"Because she has nothing to do with you," Melchior said.

"Oh really?" A grin spread across my face. "Does she have anything to do with Maia?"

Melchior put down what he was working on and turned toward me. "How do you know about her?"

"Melchior, I saw those lives that you lived," I said, being uncharacteristically serious. "I saw her in all of them. And I saw Prue, Phoebe, Piper, Paige, and Leo." I didn't really want to tell Melchior that I was Maia. I figured that that information would affect what he told me about Maia.

"We can't speak of that while they're here," Melchior said quietly. "Phoebe and Prue can't know."

"Fine," I said. "What do you know about the Living Balance? And what about the Verum?"

"Now is not the proper time, Christina," Melchior said as he turned away from me. "We can discuss Shamira later."

"Shamira?" I repeated.

"Shamira is - was the Living Balance." His voice was soft and low. I couldn't quite understand why the mere mention of the Living Balance and Maia would affect him so deeply. Though the lives I had witnessed had often been unhappy and occasionally brutal, they hadn't been very severe. Still, I had only seen flashes of the lives that Melchior had lived. I couldn't judge the lives solely on what I had witnessed in the Worldly Gap.

"And Maia?" Phoebe asked, startling me out of my reverie.

"She was a dear friend of mine," Melchior said. "But we shouldn't-"

"Oh come off it, Melchior," I said. "Just go on."

Melchior finally turned back toward me. "I will if you tell me who showed you these visions."

"It was a shadow of the past," I said. "She said that she and I are one in the same. I guess she was a past life of mine. Now tell me more about the Living Balance."

"I don't think you being entirely truthful with me, Christina," Melchior said.

"I told you the truth. She was a shadow of the past."

"No, not that. You're withholding some information."

"What makes you think that?"

"You are like an open book," Melchior responded. "You can't seem to keep your emotions secret. You can't keep _anything_ secret, in fact."

"I'm not withholding information."

Melchior was silent for a few moments. "You're still lying to me. I have no obligation to tell you about Shamira."

"Fine. Maybe I am withholding some information," I admitted. "But it's not important."

"Every detail is important, especially in my lives."

The look that he gave me kind of made me want to tell him the truth. What harm could the truth bring? It would probably make things easier. I had no reason to be reluctant. I just had to tell Melchior that I was Maia. It wasn't really difficult… I opened my mouth to speak.

Phoebe gasped as a premonition overtook her. Seconds later, she opened her eyes. "Get out of here!" she called and pushed me toward Melchior.

"What-"

"Orb!"

The basement door burst open. A dark figure stood at the top of the stairs. Slowly, the person began to descend the stairs, chanting softly.

"We will be whole," the person deadpanned. "We will be whole." The person's face was revealed. I recognized the person, but I didn't quite know who he was.

"Doctor Faustus," Melchior breathed.


	11. Shamira and the Past

Here I was, in the basement of the Manor, with Melchior, Phoebe, Prue, and a man that Melchior had identified as Doctor Faustus. So, yet again, I was involved in some strange situation. Why did this have to happen now? I had just come back from the dead. Couldn't the universe give the Halliwells a break? Though I blamed the universe, I was still rather annoyed with myself. The sisters were already stressed out, and I just kept adding to their problems. Even though I didn't know why this Doctor Faustus had come to the Manor, I was certain that it was my fault. The shadow of the past, Shamira, my nonexistence - would any of this ever make any sense?

The man stopped and stared at Melchior. A smile gradually broke across his face. "Hermes," Doctor Faustus said. "Here we are again." He looked strange. His eyes were almost hollow, and he didn't seem to be very solid. What was he?

"What are you doing here?" Melchior questioned. "The shadows shouldn't still exist. Shamira's gone."

"Shamira has called upon us," Doctor Faustus said. "You don't remember."

"Are you saying that she's still alive?" Melchior said.

"Of course she's alive, Hermes," stated Doctor Faustus. "Why would you think that she's gone?"

"She wasn't present in my life." Melchior shrugged. "I thought that the Elders had finally caught her." He walked closer to Doctor Faustus. He actually seemed happy. Apparently Shamira really meant a lot to him.

"There we certain complications," Doctor Faustus said. He paused, listening intently. "The others are coming."

As if on cue, a woman appeared at the top of the stairs. She walked down to Doctor Faustus, murmuring under her breath. "We will be one again. We will be one again." She noticed Doctor Faustus and snapped out of her trance. "Can you hear them?" She smiled. "Listen."

"We will gather," another woman said as she appeared next to the first woman.

"Our powers will rise." This time, a man appeared.

"We will triumph." Yet another woman materialized.

"Good will always endure." One more woman appeared.

The group greeted each other by silently inclining their heads. They all had that hollow look about them. They almost looked… well, dead. Melchior had called them shadows, so maybe they were all shadows of the past. That would explain their appearances. I wasn't entirely comfortable with this development.

"Um… Melchior?" Phoebe said. "What the hell is going on?"

"This is Shamira's spell," Melchior said. "It's her sign."

"Telling us what?" Phoebe asked, nervously regarding the shadows.

"We are here to tell you that the change is beginning," one of the women said.

"How can it be happening already?" Melchior questioned, seeming puzzled. "Shamira hasn't even surfaced yet."

"But she has," Doctor Faustus said. "You just can't see her."

Irritation blossomed on Melchior's face. "Shamira always was fond of her little riddles. Never could get a straight answer out of that woman," he muttered. To Doctor Faustus he said, "Has she left any clues?"

Doctor Faustus smirked. "Hermes, you must tell them about the past. Only then will you see her."

"Tell them? They can't know," Melchior said.

"Tell them about the past, Hermes," the unnamed man said. "Tell them about us. They will know the truth, and then you will see her." He held out his hand. Suddenly, we were in the attic with the Paige, Piper, and Leo.

"Dare you disobey her will?" the last woman said.

"I believe you know the answer to that, Emilia," Melchior said.

"Uh… what the hell?" Paige said, abruptly reminding us of the others in the room. "Who are you? What's going on?"

"The change is beginning, Paige," Doctor Faustus said. He came up to me, faintly smiling. He didn't seem to be looking at me. Rather, he seemed to be looking to Prue. "Ah, almost alive again. Not quite, though."

_I think he's talking to you, Prue, _I thought to her.

_"But why?"_

One by one, the shadows each chose a person in the attic and stood in front of them. The three women had chosen the remaining sisters. The man had chosen Leo.

"Open your minds," the shadows whispered. "She has risen again. Hear her call. See her now."

Paige, Phoebe, and Piper all exchanged glances. "Um, okay," Piper said. "Melchior?"

"Listen," the shadows urgently said.

We all became silent, listening carefully.

At first, I could hear nothing except the usual sounds of the city. Then, something different began to sound. It was low at first, but it eventually became clearer. It was the voice of the shadow that I had met. She was rapidly speaking in several different foreign languages. There was no discernible pattern. She would recite a few words of each language, and then quickly switch to a new language. It was strange that she sounded so calm when her quick transitions seemed to indicate that she was ill at ease, or that she had very little time to speak. I was so absorbed in her voice that I didn't notice that the shadows were disappearing until Paige pointed that out.

The shadows seemed to be losing what little solidity they had. As they became fainter, they appeared to melt into an energy. I could feel the power in the air as they faded away. I watched closely and saw that they were gathering together, becoming one. Then they were gone. Still, I didn't think that they were really gone. I could still feel the energy that they carried. It was all around me; it was spread throughout the attic.

My own shadow of the past was continuing to chant, but even she seemed to be fading away. Her voice was becoming softer. Her words slowed as they softened in volume. Yet as with the other shadows, the energy created by those words didn't leave the attic once the shadow's voice had gone. It was still there, a part of the energy of the other shadows.

We were silent for a while before I broke the silence.

"What happened to Cole?" I asked.

"We sent him down to check on you," Piper said.

The energy suddenly overwhelmed me, which caused my powers to go crazy. Everything in the attic responded to my calling power and rushed toward me. Piper froze them. I was quite appreciative.

All of a sudden, Cole appeared in the attic. I assumed that I had somehow called him up.

The energy continued to overwhelm me. I felt like I was in a dream. Everything was softer, yet more meaningful. Then anger came to me. I was outraged. I had just sensed something off about the power that had been bestowed to Cole. I didn't know how I knew about the power, but logic was less important than my anger.

_"Christy? Are you all right?"_

I could just barely hear Prue's voice. I felt no need to respond to her.

"They tried to take your power away," I said to Cole. "They made more of a mess than I thought. They will pay for that and every other deed."

"Okay," Piper said. "This is absolutely ridiculous. Christy, what are you talking about?"

"He is the guardian," I angrily said. "But they made him forget."

"The guardian?" Melchior repeated. He looked to Cole. "You're the guardian?"

"What about those weird people?" Phoebe said.

"All right. Everyone just stop," Piper said, taking control over the situation.

The anger was ebbing away. I was grateful for that. I was gaining control of myself, but that also meant that I was losing that strange knowledge. I partly wanted it to stay in control and provide further answers.

_"Christy! Answer me."_

_Yeah, _I said. _I'm getting pretty tired of this._

_"So am I."_

"Melchior, since you seem to be the only one who knows anything about whatever is going on, you really need to explain this," Piper said. I was impressed by her forcefulness.

"The shadows were Shamira's spell," Melchior responded.

"Shamira?" Leo said. "Shamira is gone. How could her spell still exist?"

"She isn't gone," Melchior said. He got out his wand and pointed it. A large book appeared on the table. "All the answers are in the book." He was obviously very weary.

Paige went over to the book and looked at the title. "_Emerald Tablet_ by Hermes Trismegistus," she read.

"Hey, I read about that in _The Art of Alchemy_," I said, remembering that long ago day. "But what does that have to do with anything? It's only about alchemy."

"This is the more complex version," Melchior said. "It involves more than just alchemy. It is where I recorded all of Shamira's history." He waved his wand. The book opened to a particular page.

"Shamira and her order," Paige read. She glanced at Melchior, who motioned for her to continue. "The world organization was built on one element: balance. Everything has a continuous existence because of the delicate balance of all things. Everything that dies is reborn into this cycle that maintains the balance. The Elders were established to make sure that the balance was kept. But the power that actually kept the balance was known as the Verum.

"The Verum was not created by the Elders, or any other force. It was created when all things came into being. The Verum is what keeps good and evil in balance. It keeps life going, and keeps death going. The Verum is totally independent. However, certain factors make it necessary for the Verum to have a protector, a vessel in which it can be held. This vessel was created by the Elders from the incomplete energies that good had produced. Shamira, the Living Balance, was the vessel.

"Shamira was made to obey the Elders, but she did not bow to their will once she had control of the Verum. She saw the flaws of the Elders' rule, and she sought to fix those flaws. To Shamira, those flaws were a threat to the balance. They opened the Elders to the powers that they needed to control. Shamira knew that they could become corrupted by those powers, so she worked to purify the Elders.

"The process the Shamira created would have diminished the Elders' power. The Elders felt that Shamira was making herself into a threat to their rule. This is what motivated them to put limitations on her. They forced her into the cycle of life. The Verum continued to maintain the balance, but Shamira forgot her identity. She cycled through life for quite some time before the Verum discovered a major imbalance that required Shamira's interference - my own dealings in alchemy.

"The Elders did not allow Shamira to a play a large role in my punishment, but Shamira came to me on her own. She wanted my help to break free from the Elders and accomplish her goal to purify the Council of Elders. Together, we were able to find six souls who would be able to aid Shamira in her cycle. Shamira was able to write out our life paths so that we could be free from the Elders. Our names changed throughout the lives that we shared, so I will list the souls by our positions in Shamira's order.

"The one I shall call the guardian was likely the most important soul. He was the one who kept the Elders away from us. He protected us. He was the one who kept the order. At times, he stayed near us as a ghost. That form allowed him to retain his memories. On a few occasions, though, he joined us in life.

"The one who can be called the controller was the soul who kept us on the right track. She brought us together and ensured that we accomplished our missions. The one who maintained the peace, however, was the one who ensured that we didn't get fed up with each other. She kept us together while the soul who was our motivation kept us going. She was our hope, and she was the eternal optimist. The eternal pessimist was the soul who made sure that we continued to fight. It was because of her pessimistic view that she kept fighting. She felt that we had to fight to get hope. The last soul was the mediator between the Elders and us. He was the soul who dealt with the Elders whenever they came around.

"Eventually, the Elders interfered in our operation. They took the Verum from Shamira and made us believe that Shamira had been killed. We found out the truth, though. I believe that Shamira will soon reclaim the Verum, for she has established the line of the Halliwells. She has given Melinda Warren great abilities, and Melinda Warren will grant power to three souls in the future. Only then will we will be able to fight the Elders."

_"Shamira established our bloodline?" _

"What does this mean, Melchior?" I asked.

"You six," he pointed to the sisters, Cole, and Leo, "are the six souls that Shamira chose. The shadows that you saw represent your past. They are you."

_"Hold on. This can't be right," _Prue said. _"I'm taking over, Christy."_

"You're saying that I was Doctor Faustus?" Prue questioned. She clearly didn't believe him, and I couldn't blame her. I myself found it rather difficult to believe.

Melchior nodded slowly and carefully. His gaze was distant, as if his mind was on something very different.

"So we're all a part of Shamira's order," Prue said. "And Shamira established our bloodline."

"That is correct."

"Wait. Christy had a vision at Magic School. She saw a witch being burned. Was that one of Sharmira's lives?"

"Yes," Melchior confirmed. "That's the life she shared with Melinda Warren."

"I understand that then," Prue said, "but there are still a few things missing."

"Such as?" Melchior asked.

"I don't know what Prue feels is missing," Leo said suddenly, "but I'd like to know how they - we - got away from the Elders."

"We sold our souls," Melchior replied.

"We sold our souls?" Paige incredulously repeated. "Why?"

"We sold them so that we could be freed from the rule of the Elders," Melchior said.

"But why?"

"Shamira can write life paths," Melchior explained. "She can give people life because of the Verum. However, she has to maintain a delicate balance when she writes those life paths. We gave her our souls so that we could create our own destinies and avoid dealing with the Elders. The Elders don't know that our souls belong to Shamira. They still create destinies for us, but those destinies are not as powerful as the one Shamira grants us."

"I think I understand that," Phoebe said. "The Elders assigned Prue a destiny that stated that she would die because of Shax. But that wasn't the destiny that Shamira wrote for her. That's why she went to the Worldly Gap."

Melchior smiled. "Very good, Phoebe. You completely correct. When Prue died, her true destiny was not fulfilled. This imbalance caused her soul to go to the Worldly Gap. Prue, you went to the Worldly Gap and waited there until the magic could locate Shamira and take you to her. It took a while, but magic was able to send you back to Shamira." He placed extra emphasis on the last few words.

The sisters' faces lit up. I could feel the recognition in Prue as well. They mutely looked at each other, mouths open. They had all obviously caught onto whatever Melchior was hinting at, but I was still clueless.

_"Uh, what's going on?"_ I asked Prue.

Prue didn't answer. "You mean she's…"

"Yes, she is," Melchior said.

_"Who's what?"_ I said, growing frustrated. _"I'm really confused. A little help?"_

_You ask Melchior, _Prue said and pushed me to the front.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"You haven't figured it out?" Melchior asked, amused.

I glared at him. "No, o wise one, I have not figured it out," I said, my words heavy with sarcasm. "Care to share some of your wondrous knowledge?"

Melchior studied me for a long time, that silly grin still plastered on his face. I was just about to start yelling when he spoke at last. "Christina, you are Shamira." He spoke so lightly. How could he speak such a significant sentence with such ease? I would have expected that he'd be more dramatic.

Ah… but of course. I knew why he would speak with such ease. He was just testing me again. "Okay," I said simply.

Melchior's eyebrow went up. "This isn't exactly the reaction I was expecting from you."

"Well, I _know_ that you're just messing with me," I said. "I don't know why, but I guess that doesn't matter. Maybe you're just testing me. Maybe you're trying to make me figure something else out." I shrugged. "I just don't know."

"Christy, this is the only thing that would make sense," Paige said. "You have to be Shamira."

"It's not possible," I insisted. "Wouldn't I know if I was Shamira? You said that Shamira fought against the Elders. If I was Shamira, I think I'd be able to face the Elders without becoming a nervous wreck."

"You are Shamira," Melchior said. "You're merely forgotten your identity. It's an unfortunate but necessary device. Once you get the Verum back, you'll be able to fix what the Elders did."

"See, that's the main problem with your whole 'I'm Shamira' theory," I said. "How could I write out life paths if I didn't have the Verum?"

"You were given significant powers, Christina," Melchior said. "You had to have such powers in order to control the Verum. Even though you lost the Verum to the Elders, you still have the powers that you were given when you were created."

I shook my head. "This can't be. I can't be Shamira. I'm just plain old Christina Raven."

"You really won't believe that you're Shamira?"

"I need more proof."

"You'll get your proof," Melchior said. "Once you receive the Verum, you will remember who you are."

"Then let's get the Verum," Phoebe said.

"How?" I asked. "It's protected by the Elders. No one has ever been able to get near it."

"Those people weren't the Charmed Ones," Piper said. "We'll be able to get it."

"But we need someone who knows all about the Elders' system," I pointed out.

"You just have to be such a pain, don't you?" Phoebe said, rolling her eyes. "We have Leo."

Leo shook his head. "You can't get to the Verum," said Leo. "No one can, not even Shamira herself. It's too well protected."

"Can't the Power of Three get through?" Paige inquired.

"No," Leo told her. "The spell protecting the Verum draws on the power of the Verum. Only a huge force could break through the spell."

Prue took over again and crossed the room abruptly. She rifled through the miscellaneous things gathered around the edge of the attic for a few moments before she produced a piece of paper and a pen. "What about the Power of Four?"

"It wouldn't work," Leo said. "Melinda Warren created the Power of Three. The Power of Four means nothing."

"But Melinda got her powers from Shamira," Prue pointed out. "So what if Shamira gives us the Power of Four?"

Leo thought about this. "I suppose it could work."

"Then let's try that," Phoebe said.

_"You're going to write the spell, right?" _I said.

_Yes, I am,_ Prue told me. _All you have to do is read the spell. _She put the pen to the paper, but she didn't write anything. She seemed to be stuck. "Okay, I haven't done this in a while." She looked to her sisters. "Erm… help?"

The sisters gathered around her. "Well, the nature of the Verum is very important in this spell," Paige slowly said. "It provides balance. We're trying to find a balance to the spell on the Verum. So… Good and evil, dark and light, the Verum controls these, now the Power of Four joins the fight. From Power of Three to Power of Four, the forces now gather and center our core."

Prue wrote down the spell, then looked up at Paige. "Impressive spell, Paige."

"Thanks."

I was fully enjoying this sisterly moment when Prue astral projected out of my body. "Read the spell, Christy."

I looked at the paper. I wasn't entirely assured that the sisters would be safe if I were to read it. "Are you sure I should do this? I'm really not that good at this stuff."

Everyone just looked at me.

"Fine, fine," I sighed. "Good and evil, dark and light, the Verum controls these, now the Power of Four joins the fight. From Power of Three to Power of Four, the forces now gather and center our core," I chanted. I then looked up to the sisters, meaning to ask them how we would know that the spell worked. There was no need to ask, though, because tiny pinpricks of light were swirling around them. The lights gathered together and showered down on the sisters. The sisters glowed for a few seconds, then the light disappeared.

"Looks like it worked," Phoebe said.

What did this mean? Was I really Shamira? The spell had worked, after all. But I didn't want to be Shamira. That meant that I had to face the Elders, and I had to take on a huge destiny. Though that destiny came with a nice amount of power, I really didn't want to have to deal with the responsibility. If I was Shamira, I was responsible for the balance of every force in existence. Responsibility had never been my strong point. It wasn't that I didn't try to be responsible. It was more the fact that I always got involved in other things, thereby leaving behind my real responsibilities. If I took on the responsibility, would all of existence really be in capable hands?

"We'd better get up there," Prue said.

Melchior shook his head. "First, you need to rest. That spell is going to take a lot out of you. We'll face the Elders tomorrow."

Prue considered him for a moment before she stepped back into my body.

_I hope tomorrow never comes._

_"Where's your sense of adventure?"_ Prue said, being strangely cheerful.

_Missing in action._

_"Well, you're just going to have to find it."_

_Ugh. _


	12. Balance

The night passed quickly, even though I barely slept. A sense of dread leapt up within me at the sight of the sun's morning rays. I would have stayed in bed for as long as possible, but Prue took over immediately. She claimed that it was because she was going to be doing the fighting. I knew her real motive. She knew me too well, and it seemed that I knew her quite well. I was rather proud of that fact. I had originally set out to find out who Prue really was, I had learned much about her.

Prue took her time getting ready. She seemed very distracted. That was understandable. We were about to face off with the Elders and get the Verum. It was not going to be easy, but I knew that the sisters would be able to handle it. I, on the other hand, was a completely different case. I had a great deal of doubt about my abilities, and I was afraid of the Elders. They _had_ killed me, after all; I was convinced that Gideon was behind the darklighter attack. Gideon had accomplished his goal with relative ease - and all because of me. I had choked up, and it had cost me my life.

The other sisters, Leo, and Cole, as I discovered when Prue went downstairs, were gathered in the living room. No one spoke when Prue entered the room. I wished that someone would say something.

"I have something important to share with you," Melchior announced as he entered the room. He was holding a potion bottle. For a few painful minutes, I was certain that I was going to have to undergo another potions adventure. "This potion is the closest I have ever come to developing the elixir of life. There is one part missing. I believe that that part can be found within the Verum."

"What?" Prue exclaimed. "You'd use the Verum?"

"It's the only option," Melchior said. "I have been unable to develop the elixir of life because the Verum won't allow that unbalance to arise. If I could channel the Verum's power into the elixir, I would be able to complete the potion."

"Why? So that you can become immortal?" Prue said, rising from her seat to face him.

"No, Prue," Melchior quietly said. "It's the only way that we can bring life back into your body. The elixir is the one substance that can bring you back to life. If we get the elixir, we will put it into your body, and you will know life again."

"But will you use the elixir on yourself, Melchior?" Piper questioned.

"Absolutely not," Melchior firmly said.

"You can't create the elixir," Leo said. "Evil could get to it."

"We will destroy it once Prue has been brought back to life," Melchior said.

"Can we trust you, Melchior?" Leo said.

"You used to trust me, Leo," Melchior responded. His eyes were devoid of hope. We were all judging him, and unfairly at that. "You trusted me when you were the mediator."

This had an affect on Leo. He seemed somewhat taken aback. I was not surprised. "I'm still the mediator, aren't I?"

Melchior nodded. "We still have the same roles. Prue is the controller. Phoebe's our hope. Paige is our fighting spirit. And Cole is our guardian."

"Then I guess I still trust you," Leo said.

Melchior's eyes warmed a bit. The atmosphere seemed to shift with that small change. It was less rough, and there was more hope around us. I gained some confidence from that.

"When are we going to go up there?" Paige asked.

"After Christy has visited with her parents," Melchior said.

Um… what? Had I heard him correctly? _He's making it sound like I'm not going to come back, _I uneasily thought. That was clearly one of the risks, but… it wasn't going to happen.

"Christy is not going to die again," Prue said.

"I know that, Prue, but once the Verum returns to her, she may not be Christy any longer," Melchior said. "She may become Shamira again. Christy is just one of the parts that Shamira has played in the cycle of life. The Verum may require Shamira to leave that part behind."

There was a chance that I would fully become Shamira again. Even though I was apparently Shamira, I didn't want to give up the only identity I could remember. I didn't want to become someone that I couldn't even remember. Why did things have to be so complicated? Why couldn't they ever be easy?

I voiced the question to Prue.

_It's just the way things are, Christy, _she responded. _But don't worry. I don't think you'll lose your identity._

_"But it is a possibility," _I said.

_And only a possibility. Now go on and orb to your parents._

I took over. I somberly looked over the others in the room for a moment, then orbed to my home.

"Christy!" Mom wrapped her arms around me.

"Hi, mom," I said softly.

Mom pulled back, studying me with great concern in her eyes. I was then caught by my father and held in another hug.

"Hey, dad." I tried to smile, but it didn't really work. "Do you…"

"Yes, we know," mom said. "Leo told us."

"I can't believe I'm Shamira," I said. "I'm going to face the Elders, and I…" I sighed. "I just want it to go away. I want to be me, not Shamira."

Mom stoked my cheek comfortingly. "I wish I could take this away from you, sweetie. But I can't. Still, I know that you're going to be okay."

I nodded slowly. "I guess I'll still be me. I just won't be the zany teenager you know."

Mom smiled a little. "You'll still be you, though," she echoed my words.

"But if I do become Shamira, I should probably get some things clear." I paused. "You know that lamp that Aunt Kate gave you? The one in the living room?"

My parents nodded their heads, then exchanged a glance.

"Well, that isn't the lamp that she gave you," I said. "I accidentally broke the real one. I found one just like it in a pawnshop, and I replaced it. Just wanted to clear that up."

Mom chuckled. "That doesn't matter, Christy."

"And I never should have been so angry about you not telling me the truth," I poured out. "You didn't mean to keep it from me. I'm sorry about that."

Mom didn't say anything. She just hugged me again. "Go take back what's yours, Christy. I love you."

"I love you too, mom," I whispered. I broke off the hug. "And dad…" I hugged him again. "I love you too."

"I love you, Christy."

I sniffed. "Goodbye… for now." I orbed back to the Manor.

_"You ready to do this?" _Prue asked.

_Yes, _I said to her. _But do we have a Power of Four spell?_

_"Yes, we do," _Prue said. _"While you were sleeping, I was able to write one."_

_I thought the one in back had to be awake._

_"Apparently that isn't true." _

_Did you happen to do anything else while I was asleep?_

_"Well, we put a protection spell on Phoebe…"_

_Ah, good. _"We'd better get going," I said. The sisters nodded. Those that could orb orbed those who couldn't. And then… we were up there. It was eerily calm. I had only a few moments to ponder this before Prue slipped into control. Leo led the way to the Verum. I felt that it was kind of dangerous to have such a large group of people going after the Verum, but I trusted that certain precautions had been taken.

We walked down the glaringly white halls until we reached an area that wasn't as well lit. It seemed to be evenly made up of dark and light. Balance. I knew that we were in the presence of the Verum even before I saw the doors that were covered with strange symbols. There was a balance to those as well. We had found the Verum. It was strange that this had been so easy, but I tried to not think too much about it.

The sisters linked hands. "Here stands balance and harmony, here stands strength beyond the Power of Three. Arise, Power of Four, arise and let the Verum soar."

Nothing happened. The sisters again chanted the spell. After they had said it three times, a low groaning sound filled the air. Very slowly, the doors creaked open. A pulsing white energy started to emerge from within the revealed room. It reached out to us. I could feel it pulling at me. I walked toward it, leaving Prue behind. The energy touched me, then froze for a few moments. Abruptly, it began to fill me. The force of it pushed up against the wall. I could not move away from it. Then it ended.

I felt some pain, but I was mostly exhausted. I collapsed to the ground just as an alarm began to sound. Someone orbed me out, and somehow I ended up in the Manor. I was vaguely aware of the action going on around me, but I was more aware of the Verum. It was pleased to be back in its proper holding place. I knew that it wanted to recover my order. I reached out my hand and the Verum touched Cole, restoring his form. Cole was rather surprised by his sudden growth of wings.

"It's a symbol of your status," I mumbled. I turned the Verum on Melchior. The potion that he had been holding was now complete. "Now we restore Prue," I said.

"But Christy-"

"No. Take me to her body."

More action took place, and then we were in a tomb. "Paige," I said, "orb her body out."

Paige was hesitant. "But won't she be kind of… decomposed?"

"She has been preserved. Orb her out."

"Okay… Prue's body." In swirl of blue orbs, Prue's body appeared on the ground. It was indeed perfectly preserved.

"Give her the elixir," I commanded.

Melchior poured the elixir into her mouth. Gradually, color returned to her body and her chest began to rise and fall. I smiled. "You are now alive, Prue."

She was drawn into her body. Her eyes opened, and she sat up.

Then… there was the sound of a dog barking. But I could no longer fight the exhaustion. I lost consciousness.

* * *

My sleep was dreamless and peaceful. The thing that awoke me was the nagging sense of loss. Something was missing within me. I definitely didn't like the feeling.

"Christina…"

"You're such a bad loser, Gideon," I heard Prue say. "This is Christy's right. The Verum is hers. She was made to house it."

"She lost that privilege when she crossed us."

No. No. This couldn't be happening. Gideon couldn't be back. I had to be dreaming. _I'm dreaming, _I told myself. _This is a dream. This isn't real. _I kept my eyes shut tight.

"Come on, Gideon. Can't you even face me without that witches' amulet?" Prue said.

Gideon didn't answer. "She's awake. Open your eyes, Christina."

"No," I said. "This is a dream."

"I assure you that this is no dream," Gideon said. "You were quite foolish to use the Verum so soon after retrieving it. Didn't you even think that there would quite a few spells on the Verum? Using it brought you right to me. And the Verum is flowing through Prue… as are the spells." He laughed.

Finally I couldn't stand it. I opened my eyes. Gideon indeed was there, as was Prue. Seeing her in her own body was quite different. I would have studied her further, but the darklighter who was pointing a crossbow at me was rather distracting. It was happening all over again. I got to my feet, moving very slowly.

"Yes, you should be rather careful," Gideon said. "You don't want to die, now do you?"

"Aren't you just going to kill me?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

"Eventually," Gideon said. "And I wouldn't suggest trying to call for the crossbow. Darklighters have very quick reflexes."

"You can't do this!" Prue snarled.

"Ah, Prue. You want me to do this. You used alchemy. Normally, you would be punished in the same way that Hermes Trismegistus was. However, your use of alchemy can be forgiven if I put you back into Christina's body," Gideon said. "You will go through the ritual, and Christina will die."

"Christina is too important to die," Prue said.

"And you are too important to be punished," Gideon responded. "Just do as I say, Prue. Things will be much easier if you do."

I was not going to let this happen. The universe had already screwed the Halliwells over way too many times. Prue deserved to live in her own body. If I was going to help Prue, I was going to have to get rid of the darklighter and get his crossbow. I could call for the crossbow, but Gideon was right. I wouldn't be able to get it out of the darklighter's grasp without him reacting. I needed to kill the darklighter at the exact moment that I called for the crossbow. I was pretty sure that I could tap into the Verum and use its power to kill the darklighter, but how could I do the call and the Verum at the same time? I had never done two magics at once. What if I didn't catch the crossbow in time?

"You are a fool, Gideon," Prue hissed. "You're a perfect example of why Shamira needs to purify the rule of the Elders."

I had to try. I had to stop Gideon before he started the ceremony. I took a deep breath and concentrated on the Verum. _Evil stands in my way. _I closed my eyes. _I can do this. _Opening my eyes, I called for the crossbow and felt as the Verum released itself. The crossbow came racing at me and the Verum destroyed the darklighter.

_Stop_. The crossbow stopped. The tip of the arrow was inches from my heart. I grabbed the crossbow and pointed it at Gideon. "Undo the spell on the room," I commanded. My hands were shaking. I didn't look too formidable.

Gideon turned toward me, a small smile on his face. "Well, isn't this becoming interesting?" His smirk faded. "Put down the crossbow, Christina."

"No," I said, trying to keep my voice from trembling. The adrenaline pumping through me was making me feel significantly shaky. "Undo the spell… or I'll kill you!" I didn't like saying those words. I really didn't want to kill Gideon.

He moved closer.

"Stop," I warned, tightening my grip on the crossbow. "Don't come any closer. I'll shoot!"

"You can't kill me," Gideon said. "Just put the crossbow down. Accept defeat."

"No! I won't let you take this away from Prue."

"You have no control over this." He reached for the crossbow.

I yelled and released the arrow. It struck his heart perfectly. He would die almost immediately.

Gideon looked disbelievingly at the wound. "How alike we are," he managed to say before he stumbled back and fell to the ground. He took his last breath, and then he was dead.

The crossbow clattered to the ground. My whole body shook. "I k-k-killed him," I stuttered. I stared at him. His eyes were still open. They accused me, and they were right.

"It's all right, Christy," Prue said.

I shook my head wildly. "No it isn't!" I cried. "I killed him!"

"It was self-defense."

"I killed Gideon. I killed him," I chanted, feeling far from reality.

"I think the spell was cancelled out," Prue said. "We can leave."

I continued to stare into Gideon's eyes. _How alike we are. _I didn't move, not even when the door reappeared. Prue opened it.

"Come away from him, Christy," Prue said and attempted to pull me along.

I stayed still, refusing to move. "This is what Phoebe saw, isn't it?" I said. "She saw me killing Gideon."

Prue didn't answer. She just pulled me over to the door.

I could barely feel her. My entire focus was trained on Gideon. I never took my gaze off of him.

* * *

"So it's all over now," Phoebe said.

We were at the Manor. Cole's wings had disappeared, thanks to the sisters' spell. Leo had informed the Elders about Gideon's use of evil, as well as my newfound status. The Elders had attempted to take back the Verum, but the Verum refused to leave me. Reluctantly, the Elders had accepted my position. But not everything was resolved, as Phoebe believed.

I shook my head. "We still have to take care of Melchior."

Melchior just smiled. "You've already taken care of that, Christy."

"I have?"

"Yes. You wrote this into my life path," Melchior said. "I'm going to move onto my next life."

"Oh." I had known that he was going to leave, but I still felt a stab of sadness. "I'm going to miss you," I said.

"Don't worry about it," Melchior replied. "I'm going to be seeing you again very soon…" He winked.

"Um… okay. Are you going now?" I asked forlornly.

"We will meet again, Christy," Melchior said. "But now I have to go."

"I'll miss you, old friend," I said.

Melchior nodded. "Goodbye… for now." He started to fade away. But then, he seemed to float toward Phoebe… Strange. Then he was gone. I blinked back a few tears.

"Well, that's worked out," Piper said. "But what about the dog?"

"The dog?" I repeated. "You have a dog?"

Prue sighed and went into the kitchen. She emerged with a large, shaggy black dog. "This dog appeared after you put me back into my body. It won't go away."

"Aww! He's so cute," I cooed. I went up to the dog and extended my hand. He licked it. "What a sweetie doggy!" I started to pet the dog. "Aren't you the sweetest? Yes you are, mister adorable!"

Prue snickered. "You're talking to it like it's a little baby."

"He's not an 'it', if you didn't notice," I said.

"I try not to look," Prue said.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, if you don't want him, I'd be happy to take him. Speaking of that, I need to pack my bags."

"Oh. Right," Prue said. "You'd… you'd better go and do that then."

"Yeah." I went up the stairs and into Prue's room. This was it - the end of my adventure with Prue. I felt empty, which was probably a combination of my sadness and the absence of Prue. Soon, I'd be home, and Prue would be completely out of my life.

I gathered up my things and started to put them into my suitcase. I could only think of all the things that I was leaving behind. I wasn't going to see Phoebe's baby. I wouldn't see Piper and Paige again. And I wasn't going to see Prue again. Tears were forming in my eyes. I was annoyed by this. I hadn't said goodbye yet. Couldn't the tears wait until then?

"Hey," Prue said from the doorway.

"Hey." I forced the tears to go away.

The time I had spent with Prue had been unbelievable. I had never been so deeply touched by anyone ever before. Prue had a beautiful spirit, and I had enjoyed helping her. She had freed me from my fears and had introduced to me to my gifts. I was so blessed by our time together.

Jeez, now I was really starting to get upset.

"Prue." I turned to her. "Thank you for all that you did for me. You showed me true magic. You gave me the ability to take on the world." The tears were again forming in my eyes.

"Christy, if you cry, I'll cry," Prue said.

"Since when do you get so emotional?"

"Since I met you." Her voice cracked slightly. I reached out and embraced her. It was like we were one again, but now I would be leaving her behind. The tears broke through. How could I live a life without the sisters, especially Prue?

I heard what Prue wanted to say even before she said it.

"Stay," she whispered.

Stay. I wanted to stay. But if I did, I'd be giving up my old life. Goodbye New York, goodbye to the old ways. Yet if I left, I would lose more. Prue had touched me in ways that I had never imagined anyone could ever touch me; she had become everything to me. She was my mentor, she was my conscience, she was my friend. How could I just leave all this behind? How could I let it go and return to my old life? That would be like pretending that it had never happened. It had happened, and I couldn't forget it - I couldn't forget Prue. After all that we had been through together, I couldn't just pick my life up where I had left it. My life had taken a new turn, and it was better now. I couldn't do it. I couldn't leave.

"I will."


	13. Epilogue

After a bit of convincing, I was able to get my parents to agree to move to San Francisco and let me keep the dog. That, unfortunately, involved taking from both my seventeenth birthday gifts and my Christmas gifts, but it was totally worth it. I named the dog Rocky. He became my closest companion… well, second closest. Prue and I had a deep connection that could never change. She helped me to get past the fact that I had killed Gideon. Because she was unable to return to the regular world, she took over Magic School in Gideon's place. I got switched over to Magic School, and I continued my magical education there.

But there was still that persistent emptiness that had been created in Prue's absence. It bothered me even when I was with Prue, which was the majority of the time. It seemed to diminish when I touched Prue, but it wasn't exactly like I could have my hands on her all time.

So I ignored it. I pushed it away and tried to distract myself. But it was always there, always bothering me. Finally, I decided to talk to Prue about it. While we were sitting in her room, carrying on with our usual talks, I told her all about how empty I felt. I then I proceeded cautiously into the subject of how it was easier when I touched her. Prue wasn't the touchy-feely type, so I wanted to be careful about it.

"It seems like it's easier… when we're touching," I told her, hoping that it sounded right.

Prue stared into my eyes. "The emptiness will go away eventually," she tried to assure me. "We just have to be patient."

"So you feel it too?"

"Yes," Prue said, almost hesitantly. "It's getting easier, though."

"No, it isn't," I said. "You and I both know that it isn't getting any easier."

Prue sighed. "But what could we possibly do about it?"

"Well… we could try a touch…"

"Christy, we don't know much about this," Prue protested.

"How could a touch hurt us?" I responded.

She was silent for a while. "Okay," she at last said. "We'll try it. Erm… how do you want to go about this?"

I hadn't thought of this. "Um, close your eyes."

Prue eyed me. "Just what do you plan on doing?"

"It's just kind of weird to do this while you're staring at me," I said. "So just close your eyes."

She closed her eyes.

I wasn't quite sure of how to begin. Shyly, I reached out and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. The small contact fed the emptiness a little, but not enough. I extended my other hand and took her hand. My free hand brushed across her cheek. I let it trail down her arm slowly. My heart began to pump furiously as the emptiness started to fill.

Then, it happened. I couldn't stop it. I tried, I really did. But my efforts and my logic did not stop me from leaning in and pressing my lips against Prue's. The emptiness immediately disappeared, and a wonderful warmth spread through my body. This felt so good…

Prue gasped and pulled away. "Christy! What… What was that?"

"I - I'm sorry." I orbed out and to my house. _What the hell is wrong with me? I kissed Prue. And I liked it! _Confusion crashed over me. I couldn't stand to stay in the house; I needed to get out. I wanted to get out of my body, but since that wasn't possible…

"I'm taking Rocky for a walk!" I yelled to my parents and grabbed the leash. Rocky bounded over. I clipped the leash onto his collar, and then practically ran out the door.

It was later than I had originally thought. I wasn't really supposed to be out at this hour, but I didn't care. I was too caught up in my thoughts.

I couldn't believe it. I had kissed Prue. Why had I kissed her? She was significantly older than me, and she was a girl. How was I ever going to face her again? I groaned. How _could _I ever face her again? She hadn't been too crazy about the whole touching thing. Just how was she going to react to the kiss?

Rocky started to pull on the leash. I didn't notice. That was a mistake, for it allowed him to get away. And that he did. He broke away and bolted towards the woods.

I watched him run off, then realized that I had to get him back. I cursed under my breath and ran into the woods after him.

"Rocky!" I called. Pausing, I heard the excited whining of Rocky. "What is it?" I got out into the clearing and followed the sounds. I tripped over something that was definitely not Rocky. Fishing my wand out of my pocket, I willed it to light up. I was most grateful when it did. I then looked down to see find out what I had tripped over. I gasped and scampered off of the body of a teenage boy. He was so pale. His eyes were closed, and he didn't move when I touched him. _Oh God, please, oh please don't let him be dead._ Shaking slightly, I checked his pulse. He was alive. I breathed a sigh of relief. What was I going to do now?

Rocky's whines came again, and I looked up. The dog was sniffing and licking at something on the ground. I went over to him and was a little less shocked when I found another teenage boy lying on the ground. His hair was dark, and he had a peculiar scar on his forehead. I checked his pulse and discovered that he too was alive. I was about to call out to Leo when I noticed that Rocky had stopped moving. "Rocky?"

Suddenly, Rocky morphed into a human man. I let out a bloodcurdling scream, which was enough to wake the two boys.

I let out a string of colorful swears (including a nice bit about the Elders and how this was probably their fault). I was about to go on when I saw that the two boys now had their wands pointed at me. "Um… what are you doing?"

"Hand over your wand," the pale boy commanded.

"Here," I said and gave it to him. "I can't even work the stupid thing."

The dark-haired boy lowered his wand as he saw the man. "Sirius?"

The man looked slightly confused, but the confusion cleared as he stared at the dark-haired boy. "Harry."

I looked from them to the pale boy. I then looked up toward the sky. "I can hear you laughing up there!" Sighing, I looked back at the three guys and started to think about how I was going to talk my way out of _this_ one.

**_-End-_**


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